China is gearing up military theories and researching methods to combat terrorism, conduct information warfare, and better adapt its military force to modern-warfare scenarios.

The message was delivered on Friday by the headquarters of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army.

In its annual guidelines for military training, the headquarters said it was moving to explore new ways to combat terrorist activities and to enhance combativeness in anti-terrorism fighting.

The moves come as a timely response to the international situation after the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States in 2001, which have sparked global concerns over the surging wave of terrorist assaults in a variety of forms.

The headquarters urged army men and armed police to rejuvenate their training with high technology and to put more priority on nocturnal military training.

In addition, it called for strengthened research into new theories on non-engagement wars, which feature massive high-tech battles without direct encounters between the warring forces. Research on information wars and special-forces wars was also encouraged.

The rules and features of battles in a modern context should be explored, the guidelines said.

They also called for breakthroughs in military education, and for military institutions of higher learning to foster well-qualified human resources.

The guidelines pointed out that senior-level military commanders should be well-prepared to conduct warfare, organize training and manage subsidiary staff.

(China Daily January 18, 2003)