Xu Guangyu, a retired People’s Liberation Army major general who is now a senior consultant at the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association in Beijing, said by telephone that the estimated 10 percent increase was in line with China’s economic growth and security needs. He said increases of a similar magnitude would continue for years to come.

“Per capita, China’s military spending remains too low, only about $57,000 for each member of the military forces in 2014,” he said. “That’s far lower than Japan or the United States.”

He added that China’s relatively large increases in spending were likely to continue for another decade or more. “For some time into the future, the rises will continue at a level higher than rises in Western countries,” he said. “Up until, I would estimate, average spending for each member of the military reaches levels similar to Japan’s.”

Phillip C. Saunders, an Asia military analyst at the National Defense University in Washington, said in an email exchange before the Wednesday announcement that, among other things, it was important to compare the growth in the military budget to the growth in total government expenditure to see whether the army was getting more support than other agencies. China is expected to release overall government budget figures during the congress this week.

On Wednesday, Ms. Fu, the legislative spokeswoman, said the 10 percent military budget increase “is on the same level as the growth rate of the budget for the central government and central-level government agencies. The overall level of national armaments is still lacking, and it will take time.”

Recent state news reports suggest that modernization and production of advanced weaponry is one major area of emphasis and increased spending for China, Dr. Saunders said. He added that “the P.L.A. has increased its emphasis on joint training and realistic exercises, and I expect some of the budget increase will support a further expansion of training to improve the military’s ability to fulfill” a Communist Party leadership edict “to be able to ‘fight and win wars.’ ”

In recent years, much of China’s military modernization has been concentrated on its navy. Besides mapping out possible conflicts over territorial disputes in the East and South China Seas, many senior military officers are still focused on potential war scenarios over Taiwan, the self-governing island that China considers part of its territory.