Defense/Military - 18. page

On November 13, the Central Military Commission (CMC), the Chinese Communist regime’s top military command group, issued the “Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Joint Operations Guideline (Trial Version).”

The “Guideline” aims to build the PLA into a world-class army force, with a focus on the establishment of a system of laws and regulations for joint operations. It attempts to answer the “important questions of ‘what wars to fight and how to fight.’” The goal is to strengthen the preparedness for the wars.

The “Guideline” is supposed to be the top-level regulation of the Chinese military. It focuses on some fundamental issues of implementing joint operations, including unifying operational strategies, defining rights and responsibilities, and directing operations. It also sets out to clarify “important principles, requirements and procedures for join operation command, combat preparedness, national defense mobilization, and political work.”

The CMC asked that the “Guideline” be used as the base for organizing and implementing joint operations and joint training, so as to improve the ability to win.

Source: People’s Daily, November 14, 2020
http://paper.people.com.cn/rmrb/html/2020-11/14/nw.D110000renmrb_20201114_2-01.htm

Wang Zaixi, former deputy director of the Taiwan Affairs Office under China’s State Council, recently published an article in the state media People’s Political Consultative Conference Newspaper. Wang said, “It may be difficult to achieve the purpose of reunification across the strait if we do not use military force and rely solely on political negotiations, non-governmental exchanges, and unconditionally making compromises.”

Regarding the reason why China should pursue military means, the former senior official said that it is because the situation in Taiwan has undergone fundamental changes and that the possibility of peaceful reunification is diminishing. In his view, the “Taiwan independence” forces have already taken a strong hold in Taiwan and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which advocates “Taiwan independence, has taken the stage and fully grasped power in Taiwan. The Kuomintang (KMT), which opposes “Taiwan independence,” has lost its ability to check and balance the issue.

Wang also proposed the “Peking Mode,” a third option in his view. The so-called “Peking Mode” is also a warfare choice, where the reunification is achieved through using military force as a threat and winning the war without a battle. “This mode can minimize casualties and reduce costs.” “The Peking Mode” got its name from the Battle of Pingjin during the Chinese civil war between 1948 and 1949, when the Chinese Communist’s military surrounded the city of Peking (today’s Beijing) and forced the 250,000 KMT troops to surrender.

When Xi Jinping, head of Chinese Communist Party, inspected the navy a few days ago, he said, “We must put all our minds and energy on preparing for a war and maintain a high level of alertness.” This remark was regarded as a threat to the DPP government. Wang Zaixi declared that mainland China now basically has the strength and conditions to resolve the Taiwan issue.

In December 2019, Wang also made a comment on when and how to “solve the Taiwan issue.” He said, “If the KMT had won the election, cross-strait relations would ease, but reunification will take more time. If the DPP continues to govern, the cross-strait relations will intensify, but it may accelerate the reunification process.”

Source: Radio France International, November 9, 2020
https://www.rfi.fr/cn/中国/20201109-中国国台办前副主任王在希-不动用武力两岸恐难实现统一

On November 4, the Chinese legislature — the National People’s Congress —announced the draft of the Maritime Police Law. This draft stipulates the tasks and rights of the Chinese coast guard when carrying out surveillance activities in the waters surrounding China. It stipulates that the China Coast Guard has the authority to remove or interrogate forcibly those who are on foreign ships illegally entering China’s territorial waters.

The draft further states that if a foreign vessel conducts illegal activities in the waters under China’s jurisdiction and does not obey the order, the coast guard can use weapons to enforce the law. Regarding the maritime police’s law enforcement area, in addition to China’s territorial waters, the draft also includes the exclusive economic zone and the continental shelf.

Chinese Coast Guard ships have repeatedly invaded Japanese territorial waters around the Senkaku Islands in Okinawa County, where China claimed sovereignty, and have even followed Japanese fishing boats.

China has included the Coast Guard in the Armed Police Force, which is under the jurisdiction of the Chinese military. With the introduction of large ships, the coast guard may further strengthen its maritime activities in the future. The outside world is worried that after the Maritime Police Law is enacted, the Chinese coast guard ships will affect Japanese fishing boats operating in the waters around the Senkaku Islands.

Source: NHK Chinese, November 4, 2020
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/zh/news/265528/

During China’s National Day, the state media revealed much information about China’s construction of the space station “Tiangong-1.” China claims it will complete the construction of the space station within two years.

The Chinese state media reported on this space station project in detail, including the construction schedule, timetable, multiple components under construction and astronaut training. China stated that it will complete 11 intensive lift-offs within two years, using the “Shenzhou” manned spacecraft and the “Tianzhou” cargo spacecraft to deliver astronauts and multiple space station modules into space.

The Long March 5-B rocket is planned to launch at the Wenchang Launch Center in Hainan province in the first half of 2021 to carry the “Tianhe” core cabin module. The Long March 2-F rocket will subsequently launch at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Gansu province, carrying the “Shenzhou” manned spacecraft.

China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced on October 1 that 18 astronauts will participate in the program, including seven pilots, seven aerospace engineers and four payload specialists, one of whom is a female.

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation once stated that the mission life of China’s “Tiangong-1” space station will last about 15 years, which can accommodate three astronauts in orbit for a long term station with a half-year rotation, and a short-term stay of six people for ten days.

In June this year, Chinese state media announced it was partnering with 23 entities from 17 countries, including France, Germany, Japan, Kenya, and Peru, to carry out scientific experiments on board.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) recently issued a warning that China’s space station program may threaten the U.S. space superiority, after the International Space Station is decommissioned. Administrator Jim Bridenstine told the lawmakers this was critical to maintaining US space supremacy in the face of a planned Chinese space station that Beijing hopes will be operational by 2022.

The first parts of the International Space Station were launched in 1998 and it has been lived in continuously since 2000. The station, which serves as a space science lab and is a partnership between the US, Russia, Japan, Europe and Canada, is currently expected to be operated until 2030.

“In order to be able to have the United States of America have a presence in low Earth orbit, we have to be prepared for what comes next,” he added.

To that end, NASA has requested $150 million for the 2021 fiscal year to help develop the commercialization of low Earth orbit, defined as 2,000 km or less from the planet’s surface.

“China is rapidly building what they call the ‘Chinese International Space Station,’ and they’re rapidly marketing that space station to all of our international partners,” said Bridenstine. “It would be a tragedy if, after all of this time and all of this effort, we were to abandon low Earth orbit and cede that territory.”

Source: Voice of America, October 9, 2020
https://www.voachinese.com/a/Chinese-media-touts-its-space-station-program-20201009/5615428.html

In July, China’s Ministry of Education issued a notice requiring students at local schools and colleges to watch a promotional video and a mini film that the Recruitment Office of the Defense Ministry produced.

The government has also recently adjusted its conscription system. Beginning in 2020, China will increase the frequency from “one conscription and one retirement every year” to “two conscriptions and two retirements every year.” The recruitment process, conducted once in each half of the year, will target college graduates.

For quite a long time, China’s troops came mainly from rural areas. After China initiated the recruitment from universities and colleges years ago, more and more students have enlisted in the army. Li Baoyang, a researcher from Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, believes that China’s urbanization process has made college graduates the main source of recruits. “Especially since the start of the 21st century, China’s rural areas have basically been ‘empty nests,’ and there are very few young and middle-aged populations. Now, the rural areas are generally dilapidated, and there are few soldiers to recruit.”

People’ Liberation Army (PLA) Daily, the newspaper for the Chinese military, once reported that Shanghai ranked top in the country in recent years in terms of the proportion of college graduates who enlisted. Nationwide, the percentage of enlisted college students has soared from 17 percent in 2006 to 90 percent in 2018.

A number of incentive policies have also been introduced throughout the country to attract college students to the army. Soldiers receive preferential considerations when applying for government jobs. They also receive a subsidy after two years of service. State-owned enterprises also reserve 15 percent of their positions for retired college student soldiers. In recent years, the authorities have relaxed the recruitment standards. In 2014, the minimum height for male recruits nationwide was reduced from 162 cm to 160 cm, and the weight limit rose from 25 percent to 30 percent exceeding the standard.

In 2020, the population of college graduates will reach 8.74 million, another record high. At the same time, the epidemic and the prolonged economic slowdown have diminished the labor demand. With the serious imbalance in supply and demand, college graduates are facing unprecedented pressure looking for jobs. Joining the army may be an attractive choice. The number of Chinese college students who signed up to join the army last year reached 1.24 million, close to 15 percent of the total graduates.

Source: Radio Free Asia, August 10, 2020
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/junshiwaijiao/hc-08102020134352.html

China News reported that on August 6, China opened the Xinqiao Hospital train, the first military hospital train in China. The train consists of boxcars that serve purposes such as a command center, medical care, surgical emergency, intensive care, and medical technical support. It is the equivalent of a mobile hospital with the capacity to load 500 wounded personnel and it can carry out surgical first aid, intensive care, virtual treatment, and other medical services during transportation. There are two dedicated railroad lines for the hospital train which are located on the east side of Xinqiao university hospital. The railroad lines connect to the national railroad network through the nearby Chongqing (Sichuan province)–Guiyang (Guizhou province) Railway. The Xinqiao Hospital train will be used as a hospital train and carry out corresponding medical training. In wartime or military operations, however, it will perform strategic support and emergency rescue tasks. It will also deliver medical support and services to the country  and to regions along the belt and road areas.

Source: Chinanews, August 7, 2020
http://www.chinanews.com/gn/2020/08-07/9258882.shtml