Understanding the Power Dynamics of China’s People's Liberation Army

📜 The Historical Evolution of China's Military

The People's Republic of China fields the world's largest active military. This buildup of force has not gone unnoticed by competing superpowers like Russia and the United States. For China's smaller neighbors like Taiwan and the Philippines, this threatens to destabilize the Indo-Pacific region as a whole. Major powers continue to leverage their influence over global hegemony, but China's military is preparing for the conditions of a multi-polar world, a world in which no single country may call the shots.

🛠 From Workers and Peasants to Military Juggernaut

In 1927, what we now know as the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) started as the Workers and Peasants Red Army. The force was less a fully organized military and more of a group of various militias pulled under a common name. However, as the Chinese Civil War dragged on, these groups began to restructure and expand into a more centralized regime. Barely six months after winning the Chinese Civil War, the newly reformed PLA went on to fight in the Korean War against the United States. During this conflict, the PLA suffered heavy losses but was able to gain support from the Soviet Union and eventually turn North Korea into a buffer zone between China and the US.

🚀 Modernizing for the Future: Post-Korean War Reforms

Winning the Korean War was a pivotal moment that cemented China as a significant player on the world stage. The war provided lessons that would help them begin modernizing their army. This process began with a reform program aimed at transforming the Army into a force capable of defending China and its neighbors from what they saw as Western influence.

🔄 Shift Toward Mechanization and High Maneuverability

Beginning with institutional changes, command centralization, improvements in technology and strategy, and even the formation of a nuclear program, the PLA began its transformation. By the late 1960s, China's alliance with the Soviet Union had fallen apart, with border clashes becoming common between the two blocs. These evolving threats led China to rapidly expand its personnel numbers, which ballooned over 6 million, the highest point in its history. Existing strategies for China's defense initially relied on attrition and guerilla warfare against invaders like the Soviet Union. However, by the 1980s, the PLA modified its strategy toward a more aggressive and mechanized approach. This shift toward high maneuverability in the field was further supported by military planners in the 1990s who had witnessed its potential in American demonstrations during the Gulf War and Taiwan Strait crisis.

🏢 PLA and CCP: A Unique Relationship

Since its formation, a key distinction of the People's Liberation Army, compared to other military forces, is its direct subordination to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) rather than the state. This makes the goals of the state and the party essentially the same. The 2019 Chinese white paper highlights this distinction, noting that the PLA is entrusted with providing strategic support for consolidating the leadership of the CCP and the Socialist System.

🌟 Xi Jinping and the Chinese Dream

Since becoming president in 2012, Xi Jinping has pushed several PLA reforms to assist the party in achieving what he calls the Chinese Dream. These reforms aim to transform China into a great power. However, these changes have not come without problems. The last time China fought a war was in 1979, meaning that it lacks any real modern combat experience. Despite significant modernization of its arsenal since the 70s, the PLA has not been able to reliably test many of these new weapons in the field, leaving many of their capabilities technically unproven.

📈 Modern Capabilities and Continuing Evolution

More recent steps have been taken to improve PLA training, but only time will tell if these are effective. Both the CCP and the military have a plan in place, as per the most recent Chinese white paper. The PLA's defense strategy covers a range of priorities which include safeguarding national sovereignty, containing independence movements, and securing interests over maritime rights, cybersecurity, and even outer space.

🌍 Guarding Sovereignty from Taiwan and Beyond

One controversial duty is their opposition to Taiwanese independence and the containment of the Taiwanese movement throughout the globe. For the Communist Party, this is an important issue as it directly feeds into the protection of Chinese sovereignty over Taiwan and other territories throughout the South China Sea. Part of this requires China's military to be capable of carrying out active defense—a long-term strategy that is defensive at the strategic level of war but often offensive at the operational and tactical levels. The Chinese intervention in Korea against the US is an example of this defensive measure in action. In more recent years, the military buildup and aggressive presence in the South China Sea is another example of China exercising this active defense for the sake of national sovereignty.

🌐 Projections and Limitations

China has undeniably made huge strides in enhancing its power projection capabilities. However, it is essential to acknowledge that it currently falls short of matching the power projection standards of global giants such as the United States.

Strategic Airlift and Aerial Refueling: China faces limitations in its strategic airlift and aerial refueling capabilities, which significantly lag behind those of the US.

Aircraft Carrier Fleet: China's aircraft carrier fleet is still in its developmental stages, lacking the extensive operational experience and strength of its American counterparts.

Economic Influence: Economically, China's influence continues to expand across regions like Central Asia, Africa, and Latin America. However, its military power limits China's reach predominantly to its immediate vicinity, making it primarily a regional military player at this stage.

🧩 The Combined Structure of the PLA

Another distinction that makes the PLA unique is in its name itself. The People's Liberation Army, although containing the word Army, actually encompasses the entire Chinese military. Under this system, each of the military's five main branches falls within the PLA. This unified approach exemplifies China's commitment to a cohesive military strategy and reflects its principle of being the armed wing of the Chinese Communist Party first and foremost.

🏞 Ground Force: The Oldest Branch

The People's Liberation Army Ground Force (PLAGF) is the oldest branch of the PLA. Its basic operational structure starts with the group army, operating much like a corps in other armies but with more flexibility and responsiveness in mind. Group armies are assigned to one of China's theater commands, each controlling 12 brigade-sized organizations—six being combined arms brigades and the other six being support brigades.

Personnel and Equipment: Since the mechanization that began in the 1980s, the once immense personnel numbers of the ground force have shrunk by 55%, leaving an active total of around 975,000 troops.

Responsibilities: Under current conditions, the ground force is responsible for both domestic and multinational security, ensuring stability and engaging in rescue or disaster relief operations when called upon.

Arsenal: The PLAGF possesses a large stockpile of military equipment which has been rapidly modernizing over the past several years. They are estimated to maintain over 4,800 main battle tanks, with the most common being the second-generation Type 96 and 96A, supplemented by the newest third-generation Type 99A tanks.

✈️ Air Force: Expanding Horizons

The People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) is China's air service branch responsible for the PLA's combat air power. Originally tasked with interception and air defense, the PLAAF has expanded considerably in recent years, transitioning into a strategic air force capable of both defensive and offensive operations at increasing distances from the Chinese Mainland.

Operational Scope: Despite other branches, such as the Naval Air arm or ground forces, fielding their own assortment of air assets, it is the PLAAF that constitutes the third-largest air force in the world. However, the PLAAF's limited capabilities outside of Chinese airspace mean that they are far less concerned with air dominance than the Americans. Simply denying airspace to an adversary is considered adequate to enforce their boundaries.

Aircraft and Personnel: The Air Force operates a wide variety of aircraft, totaling 2,566 airframes. These include a multitude of bombers, fighters, multi-role, and specialized aircraft. The total strength of the PLAAF is estimated at around 395,000 personnel.

⚓ Naval Force: The Largest Navy in the World

The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) comprises five distinct service arms, including surface, submarine, coastal defense, naval aviation, and the Marine Corps. This formidable naval force is strategically organized into three fleets, each assigned to the southern, eastern, and northern theater commands.

Naval Arsenal: The naval surface combatants constitute a substantial chunk of the PLAN's arsenal, totaling 92 primary vessels, including two aircraft carriers with a third in development, seven cruisers, 42 destroyers, and 41 frigates.

Submarine Force: The Navy maintains a fleet of 142 patrol and coastal combat vessels, along with 11 large amphibious assault ships and 109 landing ships of varying sizes. China’s submarine force is also formidable, with 59 submarines in operation, 12 of which are nuclear-powered.

Blue Water Capabilities: The PLAN has been constructing new ships at a rapid pace, making it the largest navy in the world in terms of sheer numbers but possessing less than half of the tonnage of the US Navy on average.

Expansive Reach: Historically focused on China's territorial waters, the PLAN has put increasing emphasis on blue water capabilities further abroad, such as anti-piracy patrols conducted in the Gulf of Aden since 2008 and the establishment of its first overseas base in Djibouti in 2017.

💣 Rocket Force: Overseeing Ballistic Missiles

The People's Liberation Army Rocket Force (PLARF) is responsible for overseeing China's ground-based ballistic missiles, including much of the nuclear arsenal. However, the CCP maintains a no-first-use nuclear policy, stressing that nuclear weapons would be used only in self-defense and not to instigate a nuclear conflict.

Nuclear Arsenal: While China does not publicly share the size of its nuclear arsenal, it is estimated to be between 240-400 devices. The total strength of the rocket force is estimated to be over 120,000 personnel.

🛰 Strategic Support Force: The Newer Branch

Established during military reforms under Xi Jinping, the Strategic Support Force (SSF) has a somewhat vague official role. Outside observers are confident that the SSF is primarily engaged in space and information operations, including cyber, electronic, and psychological warfare.

SSF Assets: Known assets include four Heshen-class cutter ships used mainly for missile and satellite tracking. The total strength of SSF personnel is estimated to be around 175,000.

🚚 Joint Logistics Support Force

A lesser-known subservice of the military, the Joint Logistics Support Force (JLSF) was also created during Xi Jinping's recent reforms. Tasked with unifying and facilitating the logistic challenges of the PLA’s numerous branches, the JLSF aims to reduce redundancies and increase efficiency within the PLA's immense bureaucracy.

Historic Challenges: Historically, the PLA has struggled with significant corruption throughout all military levels, a problem that continues to hinder the organization today.

Duties: The JLSF handles logistics for all of the PLA's branches, mostly at the theater level, while individual services remain in charge of their more localized logistics.

💰 Funding and Future Prospects

As of 2022, the PLA's official budget was around $242 billion, making it the second-best funded military in the world. However, the official budget does not fully highlight all the money being spent on defense. China’s biggest advantage comes from its level of purchasing power over nations such as the US or Russia, giving them more bang for their buck on military spending. The past several years have seen the PLA carry out increasingly aggressive exercises and maneuvers near Taiwan, and these displays of power are likely to increase as China gains confidence in its military forces.

🔮 2027 and Beyond: A Significant Milestone

The year 2027 marks a significant milestone for the PLA as China aims to complete a pivotal phase in its modernization efforts. This phase encompasses three crucial objectives: mechanization, informatization, and intelligentization within the PLA's ranks.

Ground Force: The ground force looks to complete its mechanization and will likely continue to get smaller but increasingly flexible and mobile as motorized infantry and towed artillery become fully mechanized.

Navy: The Navy will likely continue to grow, becoming increasingly capable of acting outside of China's territorial waters. Coastal defense capabilities will also be maintained, consisting of small attack boats and ground-based missiles to deter potential invasion forces.

Air Force: The Air Force may reduce the number of air superiority fighters, focusing instead on more multi-role aircraft and bombers.

The PLA's transformation from Mao’s Red Army to today's military juggernaut is remarkable, making it not only the largest in the world but also the fastest modernizing force. This phase of modernization is vital and can potentially influence any future actions related to Taiwan and the Pacific. The final stages are set to conclude by 2049, promising a future where China stands as an even more powerful force on the global stage.

 

For a better experience visit our official blog site

Leave a comment

Leave a comment

Name*

Email*

Comment*

Send

• Share on:
• WhatsApp
• Deel
• Tweet
• Pin it
• Messenger
• Email

---