China has unveiled changes to the structure of its military, adding three new units, described by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) as “a major policy decision to realize the Chinese dream of a strong army,” state media reported.
The formation of the new units, which follows Beijing’s announcement that it was building a second aircraft carrier, comes with China acting more aggressively in territorial disputes in the South China Sea and East China Sea, drawing the ire of its neighbors and the US.
Beijing in November last year said it planned sweeping changes in a move intended to enhance the ruling Chinese Communist Party’s control over the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
Photo: AP
The latest reforms announced late on Friday are to see a new army unit set up to oversee China’s arsenal of strategic missiles.
Besides the “Rocket Force,” the PLA also unveiled an army general command to serve as the headquarters for land forces and a support unit to assist combat troops, the official Xinhua news agency said.
Xi, who is chief of the Chinese Communist Party and also serves as head of the military, has previously announced plans to slash China’s number of troops by 300,000 to about 2 million to craft a more efficient fighting force.
The Central Military Commission, which Xi chairs, on Friday also released guidelines to help build the country’s vision of a modern military before 2020 by cutting troops and improving the quality of combat personnel, Xinhua said.
The announcements come with China also expanding its naval capacity by building a second aircraft carrier.
The nation’s first such vessel, the Liaoning, is a secondhand Soviet ship built more than 25 years ago that was commissioned by China in 2012 after extensive refits.
The Global Times newspaper, known for its nationalistic editorial stance, said new conditions required a strong army and cited the US as a reason.
“If China has a big gap with the US in terms of military prowess, this will affect its international position and other countries’ attitude toward China,” it said in an editorial posted on its Web site yesterday. “With a strong army, China can be more politically appealing, influential and persuasive.”
Beijing’s armed forces have been involved in sometimes tense confrontations with Japanese and Philippine units over maritime disputes in the East China Sea and South China Sea respectively, prompting fears that the disputes could result in armed clashes.
Meanwhile, the new PLA Rocket Force is tasked with maintaining conventional and nuclear weaponry with the ability to both deter and to strike, Xi told a ceremony for the founding of the three new organizations, according to Xinhua.
However, a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of National Defense denied any shift in the country’s nuclear weapons policy.
“China’s nuclear policy and nuclear strategy are consistent, there has been no change whatsoever,” ministry spokesman Yang Yujun (楊宇軍) said on Friday, according to a transcript posted on the ministry’s Web site.
The new unit would take over from the Second Artillery Force, he said.
At a military parade in September last year, China showed off “carrier-killer” missiles, including the land-based DF-21 Mod-4 intermediate-range type, which is thought to be equipped with onboard terminal guidance systems that give it the unprecedented ability to attack a moving target.
A Chinese analyst said the latest moves were aimed at modernizing the military.
“For a long time, China had no overseas interests. The navy, air force and guided-missile units were relatively weak compared with the army,” Shanghai University of Political Science and Law professor Ni Lexiong (倪樂雄) told reporters.
“To catch up with European and American powers ... China must raise the modernization level and combat strength of the army,” he added.
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary
TAIWAN IS TAIWAN: US Representative Tom Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as ‘Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China’ The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year. The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC. The act includes US$831.5 billion in
‘WORLD WAR III’: Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said the aid would inflame tensions, but her amendment was rejected 421 votes against six The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal 2026, which includes US$500 million for Taiwan. The bill, which totals US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending, passed in a 221-209 vote. According to the bill, the funds for Taiwan would be administered by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency and would remain available through Sept. 30, 2027, for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative. The legislation authorizes the US Secretary of Defense, with the agreement of the US Secretary of State, to use the funds to assist Taiwan in procuring defense articles and services, and military training. Republican Representative
RSS