China's College of Defense Studies has opened a multilingual website.

China's College of Defense Studies is under the National Defense University of the People's Liberation Army and is intended to project a positive image of the PLA.

Opening to the global community, the www.cdsndu.org website contains sections in not only Chinese but English, French, Russian and Spanish as well, People's Daily reported Tuesday.

The website is designed to explain PLA policies to a global audience. The site's English language section includes numerous headings, including "China's

National Defense," "Chinese Military Culture," "Symposiums," "Culture," "China Armed Force, "PLA in Action" and "Into China."

China's NDU College of Defense Studies is China's highest military organization for bilateral foreign military training. Nearly 500 senior officers and government defense officials from more than 100 nations attend NDU College of Defense Studies courses. More than 4,000 foreign officers and government officials have graduated from the NDU College of Defense Studies.

"In recent years, the College of Defense Studies of the NDU devoted great efforts to promoting the transformation of foreign-oriented military training toward international military vocational education by relying on the quality military and civil educational resources," China Ministry of Defense said.

"The college has established the joint teaching mechanism with more than 10 prestigious universities and scientific research institutions including Tsinghua University, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the PLA University of Foreign Languages."

The ministry said the arrangement gives foreign military students access to the latest research "fruits of the authoritative educational and scientific research institutions."

The college has 25 bases around China, allowing students to make study tours of various areas of the country.

"The college also provides opportunities for the foreign military students to do on-site watching and study of major military exercises launched by the PLA," the Defense Ministry said.

The website lists qualifications for enrolment as including a candidate being an officer holding the rank of brigadier general or colonel (or lieutenant colonel in some countries) and senior defense officials.

The courses include China studies, war history, military thinking, international security, national security, national defense and army building, military strategy, employment of military force, leadership and strategic management.

The NDU College of Defense Studies objective, the website states is: "Through theoretical studies and research focusing on national security strategy, to understand basic theories of international and national security strategies, upgrade the strategic thinking level, master basic principles and methods safeguarding national security, strengthen sense of strategy and strategic decision-making abilities, enhance abilities to organize and command joint military operations and be able to work at a higher level."