People's Liberation Army

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The Chinese People's Liberation Army ( PLA ) is the armed forces of the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Chinese Communist Party (CPC). PLA consists of five branches of professional services: Army, Navy, Air Force, Rocket Force, and Strategic Support Force.

The PLA is the largest military force in the world, with a force of about 2.285 million personnel, 0.18% of the country's population. It is the world's fastest military power of modernization, with significant defenses and enhanced projection power capabilities. Recently, it has grown rapidly and commissioned a new arsenal, with technological advances and breakthroughs. It boasts the second largest defense budget in the world, although many authorities - including SIPRI and the US Department of Defense - argue that China is not reporting its actual spending levels, which is presumably much higher than the official budget.

In September 2015, Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Communist Party of China and commander-in-chief of the PLA, announced a reduction in the number of military personnel by 300,000: 2.3-2 million. The PLA emblem consists of a roundel with a red star inscribed with Chinese characters for Eight One , referring to the Nanchang rebellion that began on 1 August 1927.

The PLA is under the command of the Central Military Commission (CMC) of BPK. It is legally required to follow the principle of civilian control over the military, although practically this principle has been implemented in such a way as to ensure the PLA is under the absolute control of the Chinese Communist Party. The chief commander is the Chairman of the Central Military Commission (usually the Secretary-General of the Chinese Communist Party). The Ministry of National Defense, which operates under the State Council, does not exercise any authority over the PLA and is far less powerful than the CMC. The system of political officers embedded within the military ensures party authority over the armed forces so that the Defense Department's main role is the liaison office with the foreign military rather than the governing authority. Political and military leadership has made a concerted effort to create a professional military force, whose task is limited to national defense and to the provision of assistance in the construction of the domestic economy and emergency aid. The conception of the role of the PLA requires the promotion of specialized officers who can understand modern weaponry and handle joint weapon operations. Units nationwide are assigned to one of the five Theater commands based on geographic location.

Military service is required by law; However, compulsory military service in China was never enforced due to the large number of military and paramilitary personnel. During the national emergency, the People's Armed Police and the People's Liberation Army militia act as a reserve and support element for the PLAGF.

The PLA on 1 August 2017 marks the 90th anniversary since its founding, before the grand anniversary puts its biggest parade and the first outside Beijing, held at Zhurihe Training Base at the Northern Theater Command (within the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region), was first performed to mark the PLA Day as the past parade was held on October 1, the PRC National Day.

Video People's Liberation Army

Mission statement

Former CMC chairman Hu Jintao has defined the PLA's mission as:

• To consolidate the ruling status of the Communist Party
• To ensure China's sovereignty, territorial integrity and domestic security to continue national development
• To protect China's national interests
• To help keep world peace

Maps People's Liberation Army

History

Second Sino-Japanese War

The People's Liberation Army was established on 1 August 1927 during the Nanchang rebellion when the Kuomintang (KMT) forces rebelled under Zhu De, He Long, Ye Jianying and Zhou Enlai following the Communist massacre by Chiang Kai-shek. They came to be known as the Reds of Chinese Workers and Peasants', or simply the Red Army. Between 1934 and 1935, the Red Army survived several campaigns that Chiang Kai-Shek opposed and engaged in the Long March.

During the Second Sino-Japanese War from 1937 to 1945, the Communist military forces were nominally integrated into the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China which formed two main units known as the Eight New Army Routes and Four Army. During this time, these two military groups mainly used guerrilla tactics, generally avoiding large-scale fighting with the Japanese with few exceptions while at the same time consolidating their land by absorbing nationalist forces and paramilitary forces behind the Japanese line into their troops. After the Japanese surrender in 1945, the Communist Party merged the Eight New Army Routes and Four Army, renaming the new one million powers "People's Liberation Army". They finally won the Chinese Civil War, founded the People's Republic of China in 1949. The PLA then saw a major reorganization with the establishment of the Air Force's leadership structure in November 1949 followed by the leadership of the Navy in April next. In 1950, artillery leadership structures, armored forces, air defense forces, public security forces, and army-workers militias were also formed. Chemical warfare forces, rail forces, communications forces, and strategic forces, as well as other separate forces (such as engineering and construction, logistics and medical services), were founded subsequently, all of this relied on the leadership of the Communist Party and the National People's Congress via the Central Military Commission (and until 1975 the National Defense Council).

1950, 1960s and 1970s

During the 1950s, the PLA with the help of the Soviets began to transform itself from a peasant into a modern army. Part of this process is a reorganization that created thirteen military territories in 1955. The PLA also contains many former units of the National Revolutionary Army and the generals who defected to the PLA. Ma Hongbin and his son Ma Dunjing (1906-1972) were the only two Muslim generals who headed the Muslim unit, the 81st corps, to serve in the PLA. Han Youwen, a Salar Muslim general, also defected to the PLA. In November 1950, several PLA units under the name of the People's Volunteer Army intervened in the Korean War when UN troops under General Douglas MacArthur approached the Yalu River. Under this offensive pressure, Chinese troops drove MacArthur troops out of North Korea and captured Seoul, but were then pushed back north of north Pyongyang from 38th Parallel. The war also serves as a catalyst for the rapid modernization of the PLAAF. In 1962, the PLA ground forces also fought India in the China-India War, achieving all goals.

Prior to the Cultural Revolution, regional military commanders tended to remain in their posts for long periods of time. As the PLA takes on a stronger role in politics, this is beginning to be seen as a threat to the military's (or, at least, civil) control by the party. The longest military commander was Xu Shiyou in Nanjing Military Region (1954-74), Yang Dezhi in Jinan Military Region (1958-74), Chen Xilian in Shenyang Military Region (1959-73), and Han Xianchu in Fuzhou Military Region (1960 -74). The establishment of a professional military force equipped with modern weapons and doctrine is the last of the Four Modernizations announced by Zhou Enlai and supported by Deng Xiaoping. In keeping with Deng's mandate to reform, the PLA has demobilized millions of men and women since 1978 and has introduced modern methods in areas such as recruitment and labor, strategy, and education and training. In 1979, the PLA fought Vietnam over the border battles in the Vietnam-Vietnam War in which both sides claimed victory.

During the Sino-Soviet split, tense relations between China and Soviet Russia resulted in bloody border clashes and mutual support of each other's enemies. China and Afghanistan have neutral relations with each other during the reign of the King. When the pro-Soviet Afghan Communists seized power in Afghanistan in 1978, relations between China and communist Afghanistan quickly turned into unfriendly. The pro-Soviet communist Afghanistan supports Chinese enemies in Vietnam and blames China for supporting Afghan anti-communist militants. China responded to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan by supporting the Afghan mujahedeen and increasing their military presence near Afghanistan in Xinjiang. China acquired military equipment from the United States to defend itself from Soviet attacks.

The People's Liberation Army troops trained and supported the Afghan Mujahideen during the Soviet war in Afghanistan, transferring their training camps for mujahedeen from Pakistan to China alone. Hundreds of millions of dollars of anti-aircraft missiles, rocket launchers and machine guns were given to Mujahideen by China. Chinese military advisors and army troops also attended with the Mujahideen during the training.

Since 1980

In the 1980s, China shrank its military massively to liberate resources for economic development, resulting in a relative decline in resources devoted to the PLA. After the PLA's suppression of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, ideological truths were temporarily revived as the dominant theme in Chinese military affairs. Current reforms and modernization have continued their position as the main goal of the PLA, although the political loyalty of the armed forces to the CPC remains a major concern. Another area of ​​concern for political leadership is the involvement of the PLA in civilian economic activities. These activities are considered to have had an impact on the readiness of the PLA and have led the political leadership to try to release the PLA from its non-military business interests.

Beginning in the 1980s, the PLA tries to transform itself from land-based forces centered on enormous ground forces to smaller, more mobile, high technology capable of operating outside its borders. The motivation for this is that the massive invasion of land by Russia is no longer seen as a major threat, and a new threat to China is seen as a declaration of independence by Taiwan, possibly with the help of the United States, or a confrontation over the Spratly Islands. In 1985, under the leadership of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and the CMC, the PLA changed from being constantly prepared to "beat early, strike hard and to combat nuclear war" to develop the military in an era of peace.. The PLA transforms itself into modernization, improves its fighting ability, and becomes a world-class power. Deng Xiaoping stressed that PLA needs to focus more on quality than quantity. The Chinese government's decision in 1985 to reduce military size by one million was completed in 1987. Staffing in military leadership was cut by about 50 percent. During the Ninth Five Year Plan (1996-2000) the PLA is reduced by 500,000 further. The PLA is also expected to be reduced by another 200,000 by 2005. The PLA has focused on improving mechanization and informatization so as to combat high-intensity warfare.

Former CMC chairman Jiang Zemin in 1990 called on the military to "meet the political standards, be militarily competent, have a good working style, adhere to strict discipline, and provide strong logistical support" (Mandarin: ?????????????? ; pinyin: bÃÆ'¹duÃÆ'¬yÃÆ' ÃÆ' Â ¢ zuÃÆ'² dÃÆ' o zhÃÆ'¨ngzhÃÆ'Â ¬ hÃÆ'Ã… © gÃÆ'Ã… ©, j? NshÃÆ'¬ guÃÆ'²yÃÆ''ng, zuÃÆ'²f? Ng y? UliÃÆ'¡ng, jÃÆ' ¬l? YÃÆ'¡nmÃÆ'ng, b? OzhÃÆ'ng y? UlÃÆ' ¬ ). The Gulf War of 1991 gave China leadership with a clear awareness that the PLA was a massive force that was almost obsolete. The possibility of the Japanese military has also been a continuing concern for China's leadership since the late 1990s. In addition, China's military leadership has reacted and learned from the successes and failures of the American military during the Kosovo War, the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan, the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and the Iraqi insurgency. All these lessons inspired China to transform the PLA from the military on the basis of quantity to one based on quality. Chairman Jiang Zemin formally made the "Revolution in Military Affairs" (RMA) part of the official national military strategy in 1993 to modernize the Chinese armed forces. The goal of the RMA is to transform the PLA into a power capable of winning what is called "local war in high tech conditions" rather than large and dominated land-type wars. Chinese military planners are calling for a campaign that determines short, limited both in their geographical and political objectives. In contrast to the past, more attention is given to reconnaissance, mobility, and inner reach. This new vision has transferred resources to the navy and air. The PLA is also actively preparing for space war and cyber warfare.

Over the past 10 to 20 years, the PLA has acquired several sophisticated weapon systems from Russia, including Soviet class destroyers, Sukhoi Su-27 and Sukhoi Su-30, and Kilo-class diesel-electric submarines. It also began to produce several new classes of destroyers and frigates including the guided missile-type guided missile boat. In addition, the PLAAF has designed its own J-10 Chengdu fighter and a new stealth fighter, Chengdu J-20. The PLA launched a new Jin-class nuclear submarine on December 3, 2004 capable of launching a nuclear warhead that can strike targets in the Pacific Ocean and has two aircraft carriers, one commissioned in 2012 and a second launched in 2017.

In 2015, PLA formed new units including Ground Force PLA, PLA Force Rocket and PLA Strategic Support Force.

Peace maintenance operation

The People's Republic of China has sent the PLA to various hotspots as part of China's role as a leading member of the United Nations. Such units typically include engineers and logistics units and members of the Paramilitary People's Armed Police and have been deployed as part of peacekeeping operations in Lebanon, the Republic of Congo, Sudan, Cote d'Ivoire, Haiti, and more recently, Mali and South Sudan.

Important event

• 1927-1950: Chinese Civil War
• 1937-1945: Second Sino-Japanese War
• 1949: Yangtze incident against British warship in Yangtze river.
• 1949: The incorporation of Xinjiang into the People's Republic of China
• 1950: The establishment of Tibet into the People's Republic of China
• 1950-1953: Korean War under the banner of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army.
• 1954-1955: The First Taiwan Strait Crisis.
• 1955-1970: Vietnam War.
• 1958: Second Taiwan Strait Crisis in Quemoy and Matsu.
• 1962: Sino-India War.
• 1967: Frontier border with India.
• 1969-1978: Sino-Soviet border conflict.
• 1974: Battle of the Paracel Islands with South Vietnam.
• 1979: Sino-Vietnam War.
• 1979-1990: Sino-Vietnam Conflict 1979-1990.
• 1988: Johnson South Reef Skirmish with Vietnam.
• 1989: Emergency law enforcement in Beijing during Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.
• 1990: Baren Township riots.
• 1995-1996: The Third Taiwan Strait Crisis.
• 1997: Control of the Hong Kong Military Defense PLA
• 1999: PLA Control of Macau Military Defense
• 2009-present: Anti-piracy operation in the Gulf of Aden
• 2014-present: Conflict against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
• 2014: Search and rescue attempts for Flight MH370
• 2014: UN Peacekeeping Operation in Mali
• 2015: UNMISS peacekeeping operation in South Sudan

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Organization

National military command

The state military system upholds the principle of absolute leadership of BPK over the armed forces. The Party and State together form the CMC that carries out the task of the supreme military leadership of the armed forces. The 1954 Constitution states that the President of the State directs the armed forces and makes the President of the State the chair of the Defense Commission. The Defense Commission is an advisory body and has no real power over the armed forces. On September 28, 1954, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party re-established the CMC as the PLA's command organ. From that point onwards, the current system of the party's combined system and the military leadership of the state was formed. The Communist Party Central Committee heads all military affairs. The President of the State directs the country's military forces and the development of military forces administered by the State Council.

To ensure the absolute leadership of the Communist Party over the armed forces, each level of party committees in military forces applies the principles of democratic centralism. In addition, higher division and unit levels form political and political organization, ensuring that branch organizations are aligned. These systems combine party organization with military organizations to achieve party leadership and administrative leadership. This is seen as a key guarantee for the party's absolute leadership over the military.

In October 2014, the PLA Daily reminded the readers of the Gutian Congress, which established the basic principles of the Party that control the military, and called for vigilance as "[f] ruling enemy forces proclaiming nationalization and military de-politicization, seeking to confuse our minds and drag the military we get out from under the Party flag. "

Military leadership

Leadership by BPK is the basic principle of China's military command system. The PLA reports not to the State Council but to two Central Military Commissions, one state property and one belonging to the party.

In practice, two central military commissions are usually not conflicting because their membership is usually identical. Often, the only difference in membership between the two takes place over several months every five years, during the period between the party congresses, when the membership of the CMC Party changes, and the next National People's Congress, when the state CMC changes. The CMC carries out its responsibilities as permitted by the Constitution and the Law of National Defense.

The leadership of each type of military force is under the leadership and management of the appropriate section of the CPC Central Committee Central Military Commission. Troops under any military branch or force such as subordinate troops, academies and schools, scientific and technical research institutions and logistical support organizations are also under the leadership of CMC. This arrangement is very useful because China over the last few decades has moved increasingly toward military organizations consisting of troops from more than one branch of the military. In September 1982, to meet the needs of modernization and to improve coordination in command of troops including several service branches and to strengthen the united military command, the CMC ordered the abolition of the leadership organization of various branches of the military. Today, the PLA has an air force, a navy and a second artillery leadership organ.

In 1986, the Department of the People's Armed Forces, except in some border areas, was placed under the joint leadership of the PLA and the local government. Although local party organizations paid special attention to the Department of the People's Armed Forces, as a result of some practical issues, the CMC decided that starting April 1, 1996, the Department of the People's Armed Forces would once again be under the jurisdiction of the PLA.

According to the Constitution of the People's Republic of China, CMC consists of: Chairman, Vice Chairman and Member. The head of the Central Military Commission has overall responsibility for the commission.

Central Military Commission of the Chinese Communist Party and Central Military Commission of the People's Republic of China

Chair

• Xi Jinping (also Secretary General of the Chinese Communist Party, President of the People's Republic of China, and PLA Commander)

Vice Chair

• General Air Force Xu Qiliang
• General Zhang Youxia

Members

• The Minister of National Defense - General Wei Fenghe
• Joint Chiefs of Staff - General Li Zuocheng
• Director of the Department of Political Works - Admiral Miao Hua
• Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection - General Zhang Shengmin

Central Military Commission

In December 1982, the fifth National People's Congress revised the country's constitution to declare that the Central State Military Commission presides over all the armed forces of the state. Chairman of the State CMC is selected and removed by a full NPC while other members are selected by the NPC fixed committee. However, the CMC of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party remains a party organization that directly commands the military and all other armed forces.

In actual practice, the CMC party, in consultation with democratic parties, proposes the names of State CMC members of the NPC so that these individuals after a legal process may be elected by the NPC to the Central Military Commission. That is, CMC Central Committee and CMC Countries are one group and one organization. However, by looking at it organically, these two CMCs are under two different systems - the party system and the state system. Therefore, the armed forces are under the absolute leadership of the Communist Party and also the state armed forces. It is a unique co-leadership system that reflects the origins of the PLA as a branch of the Communist Party's military. Only became a national military when the People's Republic of China was founded in 1949.

By convention, the chairman and deputy chairman of the Central Military Commission is a civilian member of the Chinese Communist Party, but they are not always the head of the civil administration. Both Jiang Zemin and Deng Xiaoping retained the post of chairman even after releasing their other positions. All other CMC members are active uniformed military officers. Unlike other countries, the Minister of National Defense is not the military chief, but usually the vice chairman of the CMC.

In 2012, to try to reduce corruption on China's top military leadership, the commission banned alcohol service at a military reception.

Military reform 2016

On 1 January 2016, the Central Military Commission (CMC) issued a guideline to deepen national defense and military reform, about a month after CMC Chairman Xi Jinping called for improved military administration and command system at important meetings.

On January 11, 2016, the PLA formed a joint staff directly attached to the Central Military Commission (CMC), the highest military leadership organization. The four previous headquarters of the PLA were disbanded and fully reformed. They are divided into 15 functional departments, not - significant expansions of the domain of the General Office, now a department within the Central Military Commission.

1. General Office (???)
2. Joint Chiefs of Staff (?????)
3. Department of Political Works (?????)
4. Logistics Support Department (?????)
5. Department of Equipment Development (?????)
6. Department of Training and Administration (?????)
7. Department of National Defense Mobilization (?????)
8. Commission on Discipline Inspection (???????)
9. Politics and Legal Affairs Commission (?????)
10. Commission on Science and Technology (???????)
11. Office for Strategic Planning (???????)
12. Office for Reform and Organizational Structures (????????)
13. International Military Cooperation Office (?????????)
14. Audit Office (???)
15. Office Administration Board (????????)

Included among 15 departments are three commissions. The CMC Discipline Inspection Commission is charged with eradicating corruption.

Theatrical commands

Until 2016, China's territory was divided into seven military territories, but they were reorganized into five theatrical commands in early 2016. This reflects a shift in the concept of their operations from ground movement to a moving and coordinated movement of all services. The five new theater commands are:

• Eastern Theater Order
• Western Theater Command
• North Theater Command
• Southern Theater Command
• Central Theater Order

The PLA garrison in Hong Kong and Macau are both under the Southern Theater Command.

Military reform has also introduced major changes in the area of ​​responsibility. Rather than separately ordering their own troops, the service branch is now primarily responsible for administrative tasks (such as equipping and maintaining troops). This is the command of the theater now that it has command authority. This should, in theory, facilitate the implementation of joint operations across all branches of the service.

Coordination with civilian national security groups such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was achieved primarily by leading groups of the Chinese Communist Party. The most important are the leading groups in foreign affairs, which include those dealing with Taiwan.

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Service branch

The PLA includes five main service branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Rocket Force, and Strategic Support Force. After a reduction of 200,000 troops was announced in 2003, the total power of the PLA has been reduced from 2.5 million to just under 2.3 million. Further reforms will see a reduction of 300,000 additional personnel from the current strength of 2.28 million personnel. The reduction will come mainly from non-combat ground forces, which will allow more funds to be diverted to the navy, air, and strategic missile forces. This shows China's shift from the priority of ground forces to an emphasis on air and sea power with high-tech equipment for an offensive role in disputed coastal areas.

In recent years, the PLA has been concerned about the performance of US forces in Afghanistan and Iraq. As well as learning from US military successes in network-centric warfare, joint operations, C4ISR, and hi-tech weaponry, the PLA is also studying unconventional tactics that can be used to exploit the vulnerabilities of more technologically advanced adversaries. This has been reflected in two parallel guidelines for the development of PLA ground forces. While accelerating the process of introducing new technologies into power and stopping older equipment, the PLA also places emphasis on asymmetric warfare, including exploring new methods of using existing equipment to defeat technologically superior enemies.

In addition to the four main service branches, the PLA is supported by two paramilitary organizations: the People's Armed Police (including Chinese Coast Guard) and the Militia (including the maritime militia).

Army

PLA has the largest land force in the world, currently numbering about 1.6 million personnel, or about 60 percent of the total PLA workforce of 2.3 million. The land forces are divided among the five theater commands as mentioned above. In times of crisis, the PLA Army will be strengthened by many reserve units and paramilitaries. The PLAGF reserve component has approximately 510,000 personnel divided into 30 infantry divisions and 12 anti-aircraft artillery (AAA). Two amphiper mechanical divisions were also established in Nanjing and Guangzhou MR. At least 40 percent of the PLA and brigade divisions are now mechanized or armored, almost double the percentage before the troop reduction.

While many of the PLA Army are being reduced over the past few years, tech intensive elements such as special operations forces (SOF), military flights, surface-to-air missiles (SAM), and electronic warfare units have all been swift. expanded. The latest operational doctrine of the PLA ground forces highlights the importance of information technology, electronic warfare and information, and long-term precision attacks in future warfare. Older generation/radio communication, control and communications (C3) systems are replaced by an integrated battlefield information network featuring local area network (LAN/WAN), satellite communications, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) - surveillance system and surveillance-based, and mobile command and control centers.

Separate Headquarters for the Army

On January 1, 2016, as part of military reform, China created for the first time a separate base for ground troops. The Chinese land forces have never had their own headquarters until now. Previously, the Four Military Forces of the People's Liberation Army served as the de facto army headquarters, which served together as a joint staff, in which the newly renamed navy, air force and Rocket Force would report.

Army Commander of the PLA is Han Weiguo. Political Commissioner is Liu Lei.

Navy

Until the early 1990s, the navy undertook a subordinate role to the PLA Army. Since then it has undergone a rapid modernization. 255,000 powerful People's Liberation Army (PLAN) are organized into three main fleets: the North Sea Fleet based in Qingdao, the Ningbo-based East Sea Fleet, and the Zhanjiang-based Southern Sea Fleet. Each fleet consists of a number of surface ships, submarines, naval air forces, coastal defense, and marine units.

The navy includes 10,000 powerful Marine Corps (organized into two brigades), 26,000 strong Navy Air Force operates several hundred helicopters and fixed wing aircraft, plus 25,000 strong Coastal Defense Strengths. As part of the overall naval modernization program, PLAN has developed a navy blue. The Navy also uses a CJ-10 naval cruise missile system, which made its first public appearance at the end of 2009.

Air Force

398,000 The powerful People's Liberation Army Air Force is organized into five Airborne Theater Command (TCAF) and 24 air divisions. The largest operational unit within the Aviation Corps is the air division, which has 2 to 3 flight regimens, each with 20 to 36 aircraft. The surface-to-air missile (SAM) corps are organized into SAM divisions and brigades. There are also three air divisions manned by the PLAAF.

Rocket Style

The People's Liberation Army Force is the main strategic PLA missile force. He controls China's nuclear and conventional strategic missiles. The total size of China's nuclear weapons is estimated to be between 100 to 400 nuclear weapons. The PLARF has about 100,000 personnel and six ballistic missile divisions (missile bases). The six divisions are independently deployed in various theatrical orders and have 15 to 20 missile brigades.

Strength of Strategic Support

Founded on December 31, 2015 as part of the first wave of PLA reforms, the Military Support Forces of the People's Liberation Army is the latest branch of the PLA. Early announcements about the Strategic Support Force did not provide much detail, but Yang Yujun of the Chinese Defense Ministry described it as a combination of all the support troops. In addition, commentators speculated that it would include high-tech operation powers such as space, cyber space and electronic warfare units, independent of other military branches. Another expert, Yin Zhuo, said that "the main mission of PLA's Strategic Support Force is to provide support to combat operations so that the PLA can gain regional advantage in the astronauts war, space war, network warfare and electromagnetic war space and ensure smooth operation."

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Mandatory and terms of service

Technically, conscription with the PLA is mandatory for all Chinese citizens. In practice, however, it is entirely voluntary; because of China's large population and large numbers of people voluntarily joining regular armed forces, authorities rarely impose conscription. All 18-year-old men must register with governmental authorities, in a manner similar to the US Selective Service System. The main exception to this system applies to prospective students (male and female), who must undergo military training (usually for one to four weeks) before or one year after the commencement of their program.

Article 55 of the Constitution of the People's Republic of China regulates conscription by stating: "It is the sacred duty of every citizen of the People's Republic of China to defend his homeland and to reject the invasion.This is a respected obligation of the citizens of the People's Republic of China to perform military service and join forces militia. "In 2010, the 1984 Military Service Act specifies the legal basis of compulsory military service, describing military service as a duty to" all citizens without racial distinctions... and religious beliefs ". This law has not been changed since it was enacted. Military service existed only officially since the founding of the People's Republic in 1949, and, theoretically, all Chinese citizens have an obligation to perform military service. Technically, those aged 18-22 years enter a mandatory mandatory military service, with a 24-month service obligation. This includes 18-19 years for female high school graduates who qualify for certain military jobs. Military service is usually carried out in regular armed forces, but the 1984 law does allow for conscription to the reserve army. Residents of Hong Kong and Macau SAR however, in 1997 and 1999 were released from joining the military.

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Military intelligence

Joint Staff Department

The Joint Staff Department operates staff and operational functions for the PLA and has a great responsibility to implement the military modernization plan. Led by the chief of the general staff, the department serves as the headquarters for the entire PLA and contains the directorates for five armed services: the Army, Air Force, Navy, Strategic Forces and Support Forces. The Joint Staff Department includes organized functional sub-departments for artillery, armored units, engineering, operations, training, intelligence, mobilization, surveys, communications, quartermaster services, and politics.

Naval Headquarters controls the North Sea Fleet, East Sea Fleet, and South Sea Fleet. Air Force headquarters generally exercises control through the commander of the five theater orders. The nuclear forces are directly under the Joint Chiefs of Staff through the commanders of the Strategic Forces and political commissioners. Conventional, regional, and militia units are administratively controlled by the military commander, but the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Beijing can take direct operational control of any major power units at will. Thus, in general, the Joint Staff Department controlled the operations of the main forces, and the military commander controlled the regional troops and, indirectly, the militia. The main intelligence forces troops in China's top military leadership have been taken by a number of people from several generations, from Li Kenong in the 1950s to Xiong Guangkai in the late 1990s; and their public capacity has always been the assistant deputy chief of staff or assistant chief of staff.

Since the CPC formally established a system of "main military territories" for its troops in the 1950s, intelligence services within the Army have, after several major evolutions, developed into three major military intelligence structures today:

1. The central level consists of the Second and Third Departments under the Headquarters of the Joint Staff and the Department of Relations under the Department of Political Works.
2. In large areas military intelligence activities consist of the Second Bureau established at the same level as the Department of Operations under headquarters, and the Department of Relations established under the Department of Political Works.
3. The third system includes a number of communication stations established directly in the garrison area in all major military areas by the Third Department of Joint Staff Headquarters.

The Second Bureau under headquarters and the Liaison Department under the Political Department of major military areas were only subject to "professional leadership" of their "opponent" units under the Central Military Commission and still considered direct subordinate units of the main military. region organizationally. Entities whose names include the word "institute", all research institutions under the responsibility of the Second and Third Departments of the Joint Staff Headquarters, including other research organs within the Army, at least from the size of the establishment of the full regiment level. Among the deputy commanders of the great Theater command in China, there are always people assigned to take over intelligence duties, and the intelligence services under his responsibility are directly affiliated with the military headquarters and departments of the military.

Intelligence Working Intelligence Conference held from 3 September 1996 to 18 September 1996 at the Xishan Command Center from the Ministry of State Security and the Department of General Staff. Chi Haotian submitted a report entitled "Strengthening Intelligence Work in New International Environment To Serve the Cause of Socialist Construction." The report emphasizes the need to strengthen the following four aspects of intelligence work:

• Efforts should be made to strengthen understanding of the specific nature and role of intelligence work, as well as an understanding of the close relationship between strengthening intelligence work on the one hand, and the Four Modernizations of the homeland, the reunification of the motherland, and opposition to hegemony and power politics on the other hand.
• The United States and the West have been involved in infiltration, intervention, sabotage, and intelligence gathering against China in the political, economic, military and ideological fields. Responses should strengthen the struggle against infiltration, intervention, sabotage, and their intelligence gathering.
• Combine intelligence departments and train new generations of intelligence personnel that are politically reliable, honest and straightforward in their ways, and capable of mastering professional skills, art of struggle, and advanced technology.
• Strengthen intelligence organizing work in two international industrial, commercial and financial ports - Hong Kong and Macau.

Although the four aspects emphasized by Chi Haotian seem to be a defensive act, they are actually defensive and offensive.

Second Department

The Second Department of Joint Staff Headquarters is responsible for collecting military intelligence. Activities include military positions in Chinese embassies abroad, secret special agents sent to foreign countries to collect military information, and publically-published information analysis in foreign countries.

The Second Department oversees the collection of military human intelligence (HUMINT), extensively exploits open source sources (OSINT), incorporates HUMINT, intelligence signals (SIGINT), and intelligence image data, and disseminates ready-made intelligence products to CMCs and other consumers. Initial fusion was carried out by the Second Department's Bureau of Analysis who runs the National Supervisory Center, a focal point for national level indications and warnings. In-depth analysis is carried out by regional bureaus. Although traditionally the Second Department of the Joint Staff Department is responsible for military intelligence, it has begun to focus more and more on military and scientific intelligence and technology, following the example of Russian agencies in enhancing the work of collecting scientific and technological information.

Research institutes under the Second Department of Combined Staff Headquarters are generally known as the International Strategic Studies Institute; the internal secret publication of "Foreign Military Trends" (??????, Wai Jun Dongtai ) is published every 10 days and delivered to units at the division level.

The PLA Institute of International Relations in Nanjing is under the Second Department of the Joint Staff Department and is responsible for training military attaches, assistants of military attaches and linking military attaches and secret agents to be sent abroad. It also supplies officers to military intelligence departments from various military and army groups. The institute was formed from the Foreign Language Institute "793" PLA, which moved from Zhangjiakou after the Cultural Revolution and divided into two institutions in Luoyang and Nanjing.

The Institute of International Relations was known in 1950 as the Foreign Language Cadre School of the Central Military Commission, with its current name used since 1964. The training of intelligence personnel is one of several activities at the Institute. While all graduates of the Moscow Institute of International Relations are employed by the KGB, only a few graduates of the Beijing Institute of International Relations are employed by the Ministry of State Security. The former Institute of International Relations, since renamed the Foreign School, is under the administration of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and is not involved in secret intelligence work. The former foreign language school of the Military Center has members of a foreign faculty who are sympathizers of the Communist Party or members of the foreign communist party. But the Institute of International Relations does not currently employ foreign teachers, to avoid the danger that its students may be recognized when sent abroad as secret agents.

Those engaged in professional work in military academies under the Second Department of Joint Staff Headquarters usually have the opportunity to go abroad, whether for further study or as military officers working in the Chinese military embassy offices in foreign countries. People working in military embassies are usually involved in gathering military information under the aegis of "military diplomacy". As long as they refrain from direct subversive activity, they are regarded as well-behaved "military diplomats".

Several agencies under the Second Department are responsible for espionage in different areas, where the First Bureau is responsible for collecting information in the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong and Macao, as well as in Taiwan. Agents are sent by the Second Department to companies and other local companies for protection.

The "Autumn Orchid" intelligence group assigned to Hong Kong and Macao in the mid-1980s mostly operated in mass media, politics, industry, commercial, and religion, as well as in universities and colleges. The "Autumn Orchid" intelligence group is primarily responsible for the following three tasks:

• Find out and continue to follow the political tendencies of Hong Kong and Macau government officials, as well as their views on key issues, through social contact with them and through the information provided by them.
• Keep abreast of the development of political organs of foreign governments in Hong Kong, as well as foreign financial, industrial and commercial organizations.
• Find out and understand local media sources of information about political, military, economic, and other developments on land, and deliberately release false political or military information to the media to test external responses.

The "Autumn Orchid" intelligence group was awarded Citation for Merit, Class Two, in December 1994. Subsequently another award was awarded for Merit, Class Two, in 1997. Its current status is not publicly known. During Chinese New Year 2008 celebrations held for Chinese diplomatic companies, the head of the Second Department of the Joint Headquarters was revealed for the first time to the public: the current head is Major General Yang Hui (??)

Third Department

The Third Department of the Joint Staff Department is responsible for monitoring the telecommunications of foreign troops and generating final intelligence based on collected military information.

The communications stations established by the Third Department of the Joint Staff Headquarters are not subject to the jurisdiction of the provincial military districts and the main military areas in which they reside. The communications stations are entirely part of the Third Joint Staff Headquarters that have no affiliation with the provincial military districts and military areas in which they are based. The composition of personnel, budgets and the establishment of these communications stations is entirely under the jurisdiction of the Third Department of the PLA General Staff Headquarters, and has no connection with local forces.

China maintains the most extensive SIGINT network of all countries in the Asia-Pacific region. In the late 1990s, the SIGINT system included several dozen earth stations, half a dozen ships, truck-mounted systems, and air systems. The Third Department Headquarters are located around the First Department of GSD (Department of Operations), AMS, and the NDU complex in the hills to the northwest of the Summer Palace. In the late 1990s, the Third Department was allegedly manned by about 20,000 personnel, with most of their linguists trained at the Luoyang Institute of Foreign Languages.

Since the 1950s, the Second and Third Departments of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Office have established a number of secondary and higher education institutions to raise "special talent." The Foreign Language Institute of PLA in Luoyang is under the Third Department of the Joint Staff Department and is responsible for training foreign language staff to monitor foreign military intelligence. The institute was formed from the Foreign Language Institute "793" PLA, which moved from Zhangjiakou after the Cultural Revolution and divided into two institutions in Luoyang and Nanjing.

Although the distribution sequence they received after graduation showed "Staff Headquarters", many graduates of these schools found themselves being sent to all parts of the country, including remote and uninhabited mountain areas. The reason is that the monitoring and control stations under the Third Department of PLA General Staff Headquarters are scattered in every corner of the country.

The communication stations located at Shenzhen base from PLA Hong Kong Garrison started their work long ago. In normal times, these two communications stations report directly to the Central Military Commission and the Joint Staff Headquarters. The unit responsible for coordination is a communications station established in the military region's garrison province by the Third Department of the PLA General Staff Headquarters.

By taking over the direct command of military communications stations based in all parts of the country, the CPC Central Military Commission and the Joint Chiefs of Staff will not only be able to ensure successful interception of enemy radio communications, but also ensure that there is no wired or wireless communication and contacts at between major military areas may escape detection of these communication stations, effectively achieving the goal of imposing direct control and control over all major military areas, all provincial military districts, and all group troops.

Monitoring station

China's main SIGINT effort is in the Third Department of the Joint Staff Staff of the Central Military Commission, with additional capabilities, especially domestic, at the Ministry of State Security (MSS). Therefore, SIGINT stations are scattered throughout the country, for domestic and international interception. Prof. Desmond Ball, from the Australian National University, described the largest station as the main Technical Department of the SIGINT clean control station in Beijing's northwest suburbs, and a large complex near Kinghathu Lake in the extreme northeast corner of China.

In contrast to other major countries, China focuses its SIGINT activities on its territory rather than the world. Ball wrote, in the eighties, that China has several dozen SIGINT stations devoted to Russia, Japan, Taiwan, Southeast Asia and India, as well as internally. From stations that seem to target Russia, there are sites in Jilemutu and Jixi in the northeast, and in Erlian and Hami near the Mongolian border. Two sites facing Russia in Xinjiang, in Qitai and Korla can be operated along with resources from the SIGINT US CIA Operations Office, may focus on missile and space activities. Other stations destined for South and Southeast Asia are in networks controlled by Chengdu, Sichuan. There are great facilities in Dayi, and, according to Ball, "many" small post along the Indian border. Other important facilities are located near Shenyang, near Jinan and in Nanjing and Shanghai. Additional stations are located in the Fujian and Guangdong military districts opposite Taiwan.

On Hainan Island, near Vietnam, there is a SIGINT naval facility that monitors the South China Sea, and an earth station that targets US and Russian satellites. China also has ship and aircraft platforms in this area, under the headquarters of the South Sea Fleet in Zhanjiang immediately north of the island. Targeting here seems to have ELINT as well as COMINT scent. There are also mobile ground systems installed in trucks, as well as ships, aircraft, and limited satellite capabilities. There are at least 10 intelligence-gathering ships.

In the late nineties, the Chinese did not seem to be trying to monitor the US Pacific Command at the same level as Russia did. In the future, this depends, in part, on Taiwan status.

Fourth Department

The Fourth Department (ECM and Radar) of the Joint Staff Departments Department has an electronic intelligence portfolio (ELINT) in SIGINT PLA devices. This department is responsible for electronic countermeasures, which require them to collect and maintain data bases on electronic signals. 25 ELINT recipients are the responsibility of the Institute of Electronic Devices of the Southwest (SWIEE). Among SWIEE ELINT's range of products is the new KZ900 air ELINT pod. The GSD 54th Research Institute supports the ECM Department in developing ELINT digital signal processors to analyze radar pulse parameters.

Liaison Department

The Political Works Department maintains the existing CPC structure at every PLA level. Responsible for overseeing political education, indoctrination and discipline which is a prerequisite for progress in the PLA. PWD controls PLA's internal prison system. The Department of International Relations The Department of Political Works is openly known as the "China Association for International Friendly Contact". This department prepares political and economic information for the reference of the Political Bureau. The department does ideological and political work on foreign troops, explains Chinese policy, and destroys enemy soldiers by dampening their spirits. It is also tasked to instigate rebellion and disloyalty within Taiwan's military and other foreign armies.

The Liaison Office has sent agents to infiltrate Chinese-funded enterprises and private institutions in Hong Kong. Their mission is counter-espionage, monitoring their own agents, and preventing and detecting foreign intelligence services that buy Chinese personnel.

Special troops

China's special land force is called PLASF (Special Forces Operation Army People's Liberation Army). These included highly trained soldiers, commander teams, commander assistants, snipers, scouts, machine-gun supporters, bombers, and a pair of attack groups. The Chinese counterterrorism unit is taken from the police rather than the military. His name often changes, but in this paper, the name is known as the Immediate Action Unit (IAU). The Chinese Army heads a large number of special operations groups and appears to have an abundance of human resources to choose from. However, it is believed that any significant terrorist activity within the Chinese border will attract the IAU's attention.

China has reportedly developed a force capable of long-range airborne operations, long-range reconnaissance, and amphibious operations. Formed in the Chinese military area of ​​Guangzhou and known as the "South China Sword", the troops should receive army, air force and naval training, including flight training, and equipped with "hundreds of high-tech devices", including global-positioned satellite systems. All army officers have completed military staffing colleges, and 60 percent are said to have university degrees. Soldiers are reportedly cross-trained in a variety of specializations, and training should cover a variety of operational environments. It is unclear whether this unit is considered operational by China. It is also not clear how such a force will be used. Among the missions mentioned are "responding to contingencies across different regions" and "working with other services in attacks on the islands". According to limited reporting, the organization appears to be in the testing and development phase and can be an experimental unit. While no measure of force has been revealed, there are Chinese media claiming that "more than 4,000 troops are all-weather and versatile fighters and parachutists who can fly planes and drive automobiles and motorboats".

Other branches

• The Third Department and the Navy are working together on the ship's intelligence collection platform.
• PLAAF Sixth Research Institute: The SIGINT Air Force Collection is managed by the PLAAF Sixth Research Institute in Beijing.

src: c8.alamy.com

Weapons and equipment

According to the US Department of Defense, China is developing kinetic energy weapons, high-powered lasers, high-powered microwave weapons, particle beams, and electromagnetic pulse weapons with increased military funding.

The PLA has said the report that its modernization depends on selling sophisticated technology from American allies. "Some people have politicized China's normal commercial cooperation with foreign countries, obscuring our reputation." These contributions include advanced European diesel engines for Chinese warships, military helicopter designs from Eurocopter, anti-submarine sonar and French helicopters, Australian technology for Houbei class missiles, and Israeli missile, laser and aircraft technology provided by Israel.

According to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, China became the world's third largest arms exporter in 2010-14, up 143 percent from 2005-2009. The Chinese share of global weapons exports therefore increases from 3 to 5 percent. China supplied large arms to 35 countries in 2010-14. A significant percentage (over 68 per cent) of Chinese exports fell to three countries: Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Myanmar. China also exports large arms to 18 African countries. Examples of China's increased global presence as a weapon supplier in 2010-14 include an agreement with Venezuela for armored vehicles and transport planes and trainers, with Algeria for three frigates, with Indonesia to supply hundreds of anti-ship missiles and with Nigeria to supply a number of combat air vehicles unmanned. After rapid advances in its armaments industry, China has become less dependent on arms imports, which declined 42 percent between 2005-2009 and 2010-14. Russia accounts for 61 percent of China's arms imports, followed by France with 16 percent and Ukraine with 13 percent. Helicopters form a major part of shipping Russia and France, with French designs produced under license in China. Over the years, China has been struggling to design and produce effective engines for combat vehicles and transportation. The company continues to import large quantities of machinery from Russia and Ukraine in 2010-14 for indigenously designed fighter, trainer and transport aircraft, and for naval vessels. It also produces engines designed by Britain, France and Germany for fighter, naval and armored vehicles, mostly as part of an agreement that has existed for decades.

Cyberwarfare

There is a belief in western military doctrine that the PLA has begun to involve countries that use cyber warfare. There has been a significant increase in the alleged number of Chinese military who started cyber events from 1999 to the present day.

Cyberwarfare has gained recognition as a valuable technique because of asymmetric techniques that are part of China's Information Operations. As written by the two PLAGF Colonels, Qiao Liang and Wang Xiangsui, "Methods that are not characterized by the use of weapons, or by the use of military force, or even by the presence of victims and bloodshed, are just as likely to facilitate the successful realization of the objectives of war, if no more.

While China has long been suspected of cyber spy, on May 24, 2011 PLA announced the existence of their cyber security squad.

In February 2013, the media was named "Comment Crew" as a hacking military faction for the People's Liberation Army. In May 2014, the Federal Grand Jury in the United States prosecuted five officers of Unit 61398 on criminal charges related to cyber attacks against private companies.

Nuclear weapons

In 1955, China decided to continue its nuclear weapons program. The decision was made after the United States threatened the use of nuclear weapons against China should it take action against Quemoy and Matsu, coupled with the lack of interest of the Soviet Union to use its nuclear weapons in defense of China.

After their first nuclear test (China claimed minimal Soviet assistance before 1960) on October 16, 1964, China was the first country to use no nuclear weapons. On July 1, 1966, the Second Artillery Corps, named by Prime Minister Zhou Enlai, was formed. In 1967, China tested a fully functional hydrogen bomb, just 32 months after China made its first fission device. Thus China produced the shortest fusion-to-fusion development known in history.

China became a major international arms exporter during the 1980s. Beijing joined the Middle East arms control talks, which began in July 1991 to establish global guidelines for conventional weapons transfers, and then announced that they would no longer participate because of the US decision to sell 150 F-16A/B planes to Taiwan on September 2, 1992.

It joined the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in 1984 and pledged to distance itself from further atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons in 1986. China approved the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 1992 and supported unlimited and unconditional extensions in 1995. China's nuclear weapons trial ceased in 1996, when it signed the Comprehensive Test Ban Agreement and agreed to seek an international ban on the production of nuclear fission material.

In 1996, China committed to providing assistance to an unprotected nuclear facility. China attended the May 1997 NPT Expectations Committee meeting (Zangger) in May 1997 as an observer and became a full member in October 1997. The Zangger Committee is a group that meets to register goods subject to the IAEA inspection if exported by countries, such as conducted by China, signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty. In September 1997, China issued detailed regulations on nuclear export control. China began to implement a regulation establishing control over nuclear-related dual use items in 1998. China has also decided not to engage in new nuclear cooperation with Iran (even under protection), and will conclude existing cooperation, which is not of concern proliferation, in a relatively short time. Based on significant and significant progress with China on nuclear nonproliferation, President Clinton in 1998 took steps to enact the US-China 1985 Treaty on Peaceful Nuclear Cooperation.

Beijing has deployed simple ballistic missile forces, including intercontinental and terrestrial ballistic missiles (ICBM). It is estimated in 2007 that China has about 100-160 liquid-fuel ICBMs capable of attacking the United States with about 100-150 IRBM capable of attacking Russia or Eastern Europe, as well as several hundred tactical SRBMs with a range between 300 and 600 km. Currently, China's nuclear inventory is estimated at between 50 and 75 land and sea based on ICBM.

China's nuclear program follows the minimal prevention doctrine, which involves having the minimum strength necessary to prevent the aggressor from launching the first attack. China's current efforts seem to be aimed at maintaining a viable nuclear power by, for example, using solid-fuel ICBMs in silos rather than liquid-fuel missiles. The prevention policies issued in 2006 China stated that they would "uphold the principles of counterattack in self-defense and development of limited nuclear weapons", but "never entered, and would never enter a nuclear arms race with any country". This goes on to illustrate that China will never carry out its first attack, or use nuclear weapons against a non-nuclear country or zone. However, US strategists point out that China's position may be ambiguous, and nuclear weapons are possible

Source of the article : Wikipedia