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)