Chinese President Jiang Zemin over the past five years has put forward new strategic principles to promote the development and reform of the military in a “three-step” plan of strategic goals to guide future development that include creating the best possible command structure, strengthening the army through science and technology and establishing crack troops with Chinese characteristics. Also, President Jiang expounded on ways of developing mechanization and information services, proposed two historical issues and set forth plans to transform troops with an emphasis on quality rather than quantity in troop formations and on science/technology rather than labor-intensive in troop deployments. All these are guidelines to help lead the Chinese army into the 21st Century.

To carry out Jiang’s principles, the Central Military Committee of China put forward a series of significant reforms that brought forward new programs that removed “bottlenecks” and boosted morale.

Further Reduce the Troop Scale and Adjust the Establishment of Army Units

In the mid-eighties, China unilaterally cut back personnel in the military by one million. At the 15th CPC Congress in September 1997, President Jiang Zemin solemnly declared to the world: "China shall reduce the armed forces by another 500,000 in the next three years." To realize this task and to meet the requirements of hi-tech warfare, the Central Military Committee launched a series of reforms that focused on streamlining military organization.

First, the personnel was further reduced with a reduction in infantry. Some army groups, divisions and regiments were cancelled and a group of second-grade infantry was transfereed into the Chinese People’s Armed Police Force or Reserve Force.

On this basis, the leadership was also revamped. The Central Military Committee redefined the functions, structure and inter-relationships of the guiding institutions above the corps level, dismissed or merged some existing departments, and reduced the number of employees and service teams.

At the same time, a General Armament Department was organized in a field that had been scattered among many people in many departments.

Radical reforms were carried out in the military’s education system. Some colleges and universities that were below par were eliminated, and those that repeated subjects were merged. A group of comprehensive institutions was set up or expanded. By the end of 1999, China had succeeded in reducing the armed forces by 500,000. The army, navy, air force and the second artillery corps were cut by 18 percent, 11.4 percent, 12.6 percent and 2.9 percent respectively. Among the units above the corps level, over 1,500 business departments were cut – reducing staff by 20 percent. Altogether, 204,000 officials and soldiers were transferred to civilian work.

Emphasis on the Development of High-Tech Weaponry

President Jiang also set clear guidelines for the development of Chinese weaponry to respond to the challenge of the new military revolution and requirements of high-tech warfare. He pointed out that China must rely on scientific and technological innovation in developing its weaponry; it must pursue learning in advanced foreign technology while insisting on self-dependence and improving its own independent abilities in developing weaponry; and it must coordinate the military and civil industries, considering both war- and peace-time conditions, as it applies science and technology to national defense.

Guided by these principles, the State Council set up the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense during the 9th Five-Year-Plan period (1996-2000). With high technology at the top of its list, the Commission introduced a market mechanism and set up a modern enterprise system. In July 1999, ten group companies were set up under the system in nuclear industry, space, aviation, shipping and weaponry.

After the General Armament Department was set up, the Central Military Committee reorganized the armament management system to form a stable supply-and-demand relationship with science, technology and industry for national defense. In the past five years, the research and development of new weaponry was carried out at the same time as technological renovation and management of existing weaponry. By combining scientific, technological, financial and human resources, many high-tech achievements in weaponry have been made to supply China’s armies with state-of-art weaponry.

By the end of 2000, China’s space technology had proceeded from an experimental stage to an application stage. The research, production, launch, test and control of satellites and rocket carriers have formed a system of their own. China’s satellite technology in all phases is among the most advanced in the world. Significant breakthroughs have been made in missile technology, together with the achievements in the research of great-thrust rocket engine, space aircraft technology, mini-satellite, space robot and remote-sensing science. Meanwhile, laser technology has seen an ever-wider use, and the military electronic equipment is developing in a healthy way. The success in research of equipment for electronic warfare and large-scale computers has narrowed the gap between China and the world. A large number of military-based electronic elements and parts have been created such as those represented by microelectronic, photoelectron, and microwave electronic vacuum, providing a solid foundation to guarantee the development of key weaponry. Electronic information equipment is developing towards a digitized, comprehensive and integrate way with improvement in security. A control system with characteristics of the PLA of China has basically taken shape. A system of equipment for military communication develops rapidly. The overall capacity of the air defense system is improving while research in this field has advanced to the highest international levels.

The development of weaponry improves the fighting ability of all sorts of forces of PLA. The army has developed a large group of new-type weaponry, effectively improving its air defense ability in field operations, long-range precise attack and motorized assaulting abilities. The weaponry of the navy is characterized by motorized operations and defensive warfare in bases. The motorized troop at sea can now conduct three-dimensional anti-submarine and over-the-horizon anti-ship missile warfare. The air force has formed a weaponry system composed of fighters, air-to-ground attackers, air freighters and many other kinds of support and other planes. Thus the air defense system combines high, middle and low air fighting capabilities with long-, middle- and short-distance fighting abilities and an anti-aircraft information net complying with land defense. The strategic missile troops now boast both solid and liquid missiles, nuclear and regular missiles, short-distance and middle-distance and intercontinental missiles.

Training Soldiers and Improving Defense Capability Through High Technology

This is a new stage in military training. The Central Military Committee proposed to conduct training through science and technology in the mid 1990s to meet the military strategy in the new age. Since then, the military training has turned its focus to the study of the fighting theories and tactics using high-tech in local wars and learning of high technology. In September 1998, the Headquarters of the General Staff held a meeting in northeast China, discussing and exchanging views on experiences and theories in training soldiers in the new period. Two months later, the Central Military Committee issued a report on this meeting to the entire army, which set the stage for military training through science and technology.

President Jiang Zemin paid much attention to the training of soldiers through science and technology and called on a campaign to promote such efforts. The training of soldiers through science and technology brings a great change to the traditional way of training soldiers that turns scientific knowledge into a new focus for increasing defense capabilities. The basic contents include: learning high technology, mastering the operation of high-tech equipment and practicing methods to win high-tech warfare through the training; increasing investment in training and renovating training facilities; and setting the same standards in training as in real wars. The final aim is to cultivate top-level military talent.

Training soldiers through science and technology complies with the historical trends of the new military revolution and meets the strong desire of officials and soldiers to learn and use high technology. Within only two years, the troops have taken on a totally new look. Their fighting ability using high-tech has improved greatly.

In October 2000, the Central Military Committee organized an activity among the whole army to exchange and demonstrate their achievements. Tens of thousands of soldiers from the army, navy, air force and second artillery corps showed abilities. Through such advanced techniques as cable communication and long-distance transmission, they practiced with live ammunition or fought simulated Internet battles in Beijing, Inner Mongolia, Liaoning, Jilin and Bohai Sea.

(The authors, Wang Fa’an and Zhang Jie, are researchers with the Chinese Academy of Military Sciences)

(China.org.cn 08/28/2001)