In its effort to achieve global military dominance, if not supremacy, in the next 30 years, the Chinese government’s latest defense white paper published in 2019 provides both the goals to achieve and the challenges the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has to overcome.
For well over a decade China has been moving away from a huge, low-tech peasant military to a smaller, more agile, and high-tech force.
And it is steadily reaching its goals.
The report, China’s National Defense in the New Era, explains how the PLA will “address deficiencies in overseas operations and support, builds far seas forces, develops overseas logistical facilities, and enhances capabilities in accomplishing diversified military tasks.”
Among the changes, the document notes the importance of Cyberwarfare, the need for more flexible command and control, as well as increased and more capable long-range naval operations.
The National Interest notes that while there was nothing truly surprising in the white paper:
Still, there is plenty in the paper to disturb the West as well as China’s Asian neighbors. China will continue to replace older aircraft and ships with more advanced models. It is setting its eyes on distant horizons: the PLA will “address deficiencies in overseas operations and support, builds far seas forces, develops overseas logistical facilities, and enhances capabilities in accomplishing diversified military tasks.”
And the Chinese military still has its eyes on Taiwan. “China has the firm resolve and the ability to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and will never allow the secession of any part of its territory by anyone, any organization or any political party by any means at any time,” the white paper says. “We make no promise to renounce the use of force, and reserve the option of taking all necessary measures.
This is by no means targeted at our compatriots in Taiwan, but at the interference of external forces and the very small number of “Taiwan independence” separatists and their activities. The PLA will resolutely defeat anyone attempting to separate Taiwan from China and safeguard national unity at all costs.”
Nevertheless, notes Michael Peck, “…behind the curtain of hypersonic missiles and stealth fighters, is a military that worries about corruption and discipline.” The document notes that the PLA worries about both corruption and military discipline. Peck adds:
The most glaring is corruption, which has led to numerous senior officers being punished for crimes such as selling promotions. “China’s armed forces are tightening political discipline and rules, investigating and dealing strictly with grave violations of CPC discipline and state laws,” the white paper says.
But discipline is a concern as well according to the report:
China’s armed forces are striving to manage the troops more strictly in all respects. They have fully implemented military rules and regulations, restored and improved the traditional mechanism of using bugles to communicate and command, carried out safety inspections to identify and tackle potential problems, stepped up garrison military policing, strengthened the management of military vehicles by targeted measures, and set up a mechanism of regular notification on garrison military policing.
Bottom line, the PLA is steadily pursuing its goal to become a significant, if not leading, military superpower by the 100th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 2049, but it still has serious weaknesses and challenges to overcome before it gets there.
The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of AmericanActionNews.com
Been so since end Korean War to date
My neighbor’s aunt makes 62 every hour on the internet..iif she has been without work for eight months but the previous month her revenue was 19022 only working on the laptop 5 hours a day.. check this …… 𝐏𝐚𝐲𝐛𝐮𝐳𝐳𝟏.𝐜𝐨𝐦
It looks like Joe and his administration is going to help them do it.
Joek sold his soul
and is in China’s hole
Slight correction. China is in Joe’s hole.
😬. Eeeeewww! CORRECT…. but Eeeeewww!
The “BIG GUY” gets his 10% and China gets Taiwan.
For once the People’s liberation army should liberate themselves from oppression and organ donation …
Go to now
demand one day elections counted same day voter ID must be shown to vote constituency must petition to change the law by voting no more electronic devices count by hand
As our politicians stand by and help them, by doing nothing.
Oh, they Don’t just “stand by”. They’re in the line where the favors are paid, COLLECTING Their share.
Now that China has the majority of America’s middle class jobs they can achieve it! Thanks to all of the money the Chinese have been funneling back to the Demo RAT politicians! As well as all of the RINO’s! The thing is the idiot politicians are too blinded by GREED to even think about what the long term effects for the USA will be on ANYTHING they do! Without an Economy thanks to #CoronaSCAM2020 everything in our future comes to a halt it will stop gradually but take forever for everything back up and going again! But with giving China our middle class jobs what is there left to get the ECONOMY GOING AGAIN??????? Not much of anything at the possible peak with the majority of middle class jobs gone to China the peak of what we can expect our country to look like will be about a tenth of the prosperity we had in the 1980’s that is if we are extremely lucky but at the possible point of hitting that peak with the demo RATS in control is absolutely impossible! The only way to hit any kind of peak in prosperity is to vote the Demo RAT party completely out of office and pass nationwide election reforms to make sure they cannot use a scam to cheat their way back into any kind of office until after 2050! At that point if they can get Biden’s tax and spend schemes under control we may be able to have some prosperity again!
My Mother had a saying (among many sayings she loved ) “MAN PROPOSE BUT GOD DISPOSE” The wrath of God against the enslavement of humanity is being implemented now. Already the 3 Gorges Dam has collapsed, and the severe flooding sadly has displaced many people who are innocent. Its the CCP that will face Gods wrath.
I say drop a nuke on China
Well, our “brilliant leaders” sold out all our heavy basic industry in the latter half of the 20th century with decentralization and with NAFTA, GATT,and fast track we saw manufacturing follow suit so that we make almost nothing here anymore with “flowers and a cherry on top” so you think we don’t fall? Autos are assembled here but the parts come from all over the world (As does Steel, fuel, and mufactured goods ) with tremendous expenditure of fuel to transport by ship and truck and rail so Biden can deep six our pipeline to the Athabaska tar sands and run up the cost of what we have left in the North American Continent. Sayonara folks!
More then likely, we have a gutless government and a pansy population and all our old vets will not be able to stop them theirselves
Well with the help from the communist democrat cult party and the access to the black hawk helicopters left to the Taliban, the Chinese will be able to reverse engineer a lot of our weaponry! And who said dementia jo didn’t earn his 10% to the big guy!