A U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) report published Tuesday says that Beijing’s primary goals for the Korean Peninsula include stability and denuclearization, but China’s military could intervene to help “preserve a North Korean buffer state” in a contingency.

In its annual report to Congress on Chinese military and security developments, the DoD said that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducts military exercises to prepare for such a contingency, including training for air, land, sea and chemical defense.