"War is won through calmness"
Taking into account the current international situation, the Chinese political leadership is continuously working to improve the military-doctrinal basis in the interests of the national Armed Forces. Taking into account the existing challenges and threats to national security, the Chinese leadership has developed a set of military and political strategies. Given the low probability of a large-scale war involving China in the near and medium term, the political leadership of the People's Republic of China in its views on the use of Armed Forces is based on the "strategy of active defense" and the "concept of local war".
ACTIVE DEFENSE IN CHINESE
The "active defense strategy" in the PRC refers to the following set of actions:
– conducting strategic defense on pre-prepared lines in order to disrupt the enemy's offensive, prevent its breakthrough into the interior of the country and ensure the timely transfer of the state to a wartime regime;
– creating a strategic balance;
– the transition to a strategic counteroffensive.
At the same time, this approach does not exclude decisive offensive actions in the initial period of the war. The main objectives of such offensive actions are considered to be pre-empting the enemy in defeating key elements of combat systems and depriving it of military and technical superiority over the Armed Forces of the People's Republic of China.
Given the military and political activity of the United States, the Chinese leadership has been implementing an asymmetric "regional blocking" strategy since 1996. It considers the United States and its allies (Japan, the Republic of Korea, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia and Australia) as a likely opponent.
The main goal is to prevent the blocking of China's maritime supply lines. The priorities of the strategy are as follows: the construction of aircraft carriers; the commissioning of new amphibious ships; the increase in the number of deck-based fighters and helicopters; the increase in the number of modern submarines.
NUCLEAR STRATEGY
The most important element of the PRC's military policy is the nuclear strategy, which until the early 1990s of the last century included the idea of using nuclear weapons in the event of a large-scale armed confrontation with the enemy. However, after the events of 1991 in the Persian Gulf region (the "Gulf War", or the "War for the Liberation of Kuwait"), the doctrine began to change towards the possibility of using non-nuclear munitions from missile carriers.
The components of the PRC's nuclear deterrence strategy are as follows:
– demonstration of the "threat of a retaliatory nuclear strike" to ensure domestic and foreign policy security;
– protection from a missile attack by enemy forces by conducting thorough air defense training, masking potential targets;
– the use of nuclear missile strikes as a retaliatory measure;
– a combination of both centralized management and dispersed basing of subordinate forces and means.
Nuclear weapons are regarded by Beijing primarily as a tool to increase the role and importance of China in international affairs, strengthen its influence on the military and political situation in the world, as well as as a strategic means of "deterring any opponents from attempts to exert military pressure on the PRC."
In this regard, the Chinese leadership believes that the country should have effective nuclear strategic offensive forces, including a land, air and sea component.
Officially advocating the universal prohibition and complete destruction of nuclear weapons, Beijing actually does not allow itself to assume any specific obligations limiting the development of the PRC's nuclear potential.
China identifies a number of factors preventing its involvement in nuclear disarmament. These include the deployment by Washington and its allies of the global missile defense system (ABM), as well as the insufficient, according to Chinese estimates, level of reduction of nuclear warheads and their carriers by the United States and Russia. It is believed that hiding the true state of the PRC's nuclear potential contributes to the PLA's solution of strategic deterrence tasks.
REGULATORY FRAMEWORK
It is reliably known that Chinese military experts and political scientists include the following factors that activate military construction in the People's Republic of China:
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the inclusion of the territory of eastern China and its waters in the area of responsibility of the joint command of the US Armed Forces in the Pacific zone;
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The US withdrawal in 2002 from the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty of 1972;
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the creation of elements of the U.S. missile defense system with the involvement of Japan and South Korea;
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the development of the theory and practice of air and naval operations by American military strategists.
In accordance with art. 29 of the Constitution of the PRC 2004 the Armed forces of China belongs to the Chinese citizens. The normative legal document stipulates that the tasks of the national Armed Forces include: ensuring national security, countering external aggression, protecting the homeland, protecting people. The State is modernizing the Armed Forces to strengthen its capabilities to protect China's national interests.
The Law on National Defense (as amended in 2015) gives researchers a general idea of the main direction of application of the Armed Forces of the People's Republic of China – "protection of the Motherland from aggression." The decision on the use of the PLA in the event of aggression is the exclusive right of the Central Military Council (CVS) of China. The mechanism of transition of the national Armed Forces to concrete actions is regulated by the plans of the respective headquarters. However, their content is inaccessible due to the closed nature of this kind of information.
In accordance with the Law on Territorial Integrity (adopted in 2005), Taiwan's declaration of independence may be regarded by the Chinese leadership as a threat to national security. The law contains norms and principles of a legal nature, which the state and military leadership of China will adhere to during such a problematic situation. The document states the possibility of the PRC using military force.
The law notes that the Taiwan problem is exclusively an internal matter of the PRC, and its solution is not subject to interference from "external forces". This gives Chinese decision-makers considerable space for a subjective interpretation of the situation, taking into account the political conjuncture of a particular historical moment.
MILITARY DOCTRINAL DOCUMENTS
The main military doctrinal document of the People's Republic of China is the publication of the "Directions of Military Strategy" of the Central Military Council. This document is updated about once a decade. It is classified for the general public, however, according to the decision of the Central Committee, its individual extracts and provisions may be published.
The document describes the main threats faced by the Chinese state. The views of the country's leadership on the nature of modern wars, military conflicts, and trends in the development of military art are presented. The short-term and long-term goals of military construction are determined.
In the entire history of the People's Republic of China, the "Directions of military Strategy" were admitted nine times following the results of an expanded meeting of the Central Military Commission. In the past, these documents were not publicly posted, but starting in 1998, the press office of the Ministry of Defense of the People's Republic of China began publishing White Papers on National Defense, which set out the current priorities of military policy in a form adapted for the public.
The White Paper "National Defense of the People's Republic of China in 2008" declares the expansion of the spheres of national interests in the world: "China's development cannot be separated from the changes in the world. Prosperity and stability in the world cannot be separated from China's development."
In accordance with the White Paper "National Defense of the People's Republic of China in 2010," the Chinese government intends to create "intergovernmental structures with some friendly countries" in charge of international military and military-technical cooperation. The military-doctrinal document pays special attention to the deepening of "good-neighborly friendship and pragmatic cooperation" with foreign countries.
In 2013, the Press Office of the Ministry of Defense of the People's Republic of China published a White Paper "Diversification of the use of the Chinese Armed Forces." The military doctrinal document sets out theses that fully reflect official Beijing's foreign policy priorities: the transformation of regional defense into "transregional mobility" and the expansion of the spectrum of China's national interests as it integrates into the global economy.
This document highlights the increasing role of the PLA's naval component in ensuring the national interests of official Beijing. The document also unveiled measures to modernize the national defense of the People's Republic of China: the creation of an aircraft carrier fleet of fully national production, accelerated development of combat aviation, improvement of mechanized units and special operations forces of the PLA.
The normative and doctrinal document "Chinese Military Strategy" (2015) focuses on the fact that "in a new historical period, the Chinese army must effectively solve the assigned tasks of protecting peace in various regions; actively expand cooperation in the field of military security with other countries."
It was emphasized that "in order to fulfill its obligations, China will support peace initiatives under the auspices of the United Nations, exercise the right in the UN Security Council (UNSC), resolve conflicts by peaceful means, and contribute to the protection of regional security. By strengthening national power, the Chinese Armed Forces will be even more actively involved in peacekeeping operations and organizing assistance within the framework of international organizations."
The stated provisions were further developed in the White Paper on National Defense "China's Policy on Security Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific Region" (2017), which revealed the official views of the Chinese leadership on approaches to cooperation with foreign countries, including in the military sphere. The document defines the need for interaction with other states within the framework of peacekeeping activities as part of UN contingents, and draws attention to the primacy of the role of multilateral international cooperation in normalizing the situation in hot spots.
THE "WHITE BOOK" OF THE NEW ERA
In 2019, the White Paper on National Defense "National Defense of the People's Republic of China in a New Era" was published. The new edition of the White Paper was published in order to remove the ever-increasing concern of the international community about the pace of China's military construction by demonstrating its "transparency" and "peaceful nature." The publication also noted the determination of official Beijing to protect the national interests of the country based on its Armed Forces.
The same military-doctrinal document talks about the complication of the current military-political situation and the growing challenges and threats to the security of the People's Republic of China. Official Beijing refers to them:
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US activities to build up military superiority in the Asia-Pacific region;
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The US attempts to intervene in the settlement of the territorial problems of the South China and East China Seas, Taiwan, as well as Tibetan and Uighur separatism;
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Japan's increased defense spending;
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instability on the borders of the People's Republic of China, unresolved territorial claims with neighboring states.
The increasing role of the PLA in ensuring Beijing's interests beyond the national territory, in outer space and cybernetic space is also emphasized. Attention is drawn to increasing the capabilities of the Chinese Armed Forces to conduct operations outside the country, the formation of naval forces operating in the waters of the ocean zone, and the creation of a network of logistics points in foreign countries in the interests of the PLA Navy.
The Chinese leaders once again confirm the immutability of their strategic views on the use of nuclear weapons, which consist in the impossibility of using them first and unilaterally against non-nuclear countries. However, official Beijing rejects the very possibility of joining and ratifying the treaties of the leading nuclear countries, as this may limit the potential of strategic deterrence of the Chinese state.
To refute the idea of "excessive militarization" of China, this edition of the White Paper covers in detail the issues of the military economy of the national Armed Forces. The emphasis is placed on the expediency of building national defense and the economy, as well as on the low share of the military budget in gross domestic product and on relatively small government expenditures in comparison with other militarily developed countries.
A new provision of the White Paper under consideration was also the linking of the tasks of China's military construction with the implementation of the concept of the "Community of the Common Destiny of Mankind" (SESCH), put forward by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2012. The document emphasizes that by promoting the EUFOR, China's militarily powerful Armed Forces are becoming a "reliable pillar" and a guarantor of the new global security architecture.
Russia's reform of the national Armed forces is considered in the document as a factor exacerbating geopolitical rivalry. The Russian Federation is recognized as the main political partner with whom it is considered advisable to maintain an unprecedented high level of cooperation in the military sphere. However, official Beijing emphasizes that it refuses to join any military/military-political bloc.
This document, among other things, aims to declare China as a country that, in the face of global challenges and threats, is able to solve foreign policy problems by force. It should also be noted that the White Papers are being published against the background of an increasing conflict potential between China and the United States in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea.
Taiwanese gunners are conducting exercises at the base in Zhenjiang. Photo from the Flickr page of the military news agency of the Ministry of National Defense of Taiwan
INTERNATIONAL PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS
China's participation in peacekeeping operations within the framework of the UN mandate is regulated by a document entitled "Rules for the implementation of PLA Peacekeeping Missions", approved by the Central Committee of the People's Republic of China in 2012.
In accordance with the country's Constitution and the principles of the UN Charter, Chinese military personnel perform tasks as part of peacekeeping contingents in the Congo, Liberia, Lebanon, Mali, Mozambique, and South Sudan. They perform the duties of observers, police, participate in road repairs, mine clearance, and provide medical assistance.
In addition to directly performing their main functions, Chinese peacekeepers solve tasks to protect the interests of the People's Republic of China outside the national territory. Since December 2008, China has been sending detachments of national Navy ships to the Gulf of Aden and the territorial waters of Somalia on a permanent basis to protect navigation. Since 2017, Chinese military personnel have been carrying out tasks for the protection and defense of the logistics point of the Chinese Navy in Djibouti.
NON-COMBAT TASKS
China has developed a regulatory framework for the use of PLA units to perform non-combat tasks: maintaining domestic political stability, countering terrorism, eliminating natural disasters, and man-made disasters. In accordance with the Law of the People's Republic of China "On Emergency Response" (2007), military formations are involved in the interests of conducting priority rescue and other urgent work.
The normative legal acts regulating activities in this area include the legislative acts "On Mobilization" (2010), "On the People's Armed Militia" (2009), the provisions "On the participation of the Armed Forces of the People's Republic of China in the elimination of the consequences of natural disasters and man-made disasters" (2005), "On emergency management of troops under the occurrence of emergency incidents" (2010), the directives of the Central Committee of the People's Republic of China and the resolutions of the State Council of the People's Republic of China.
By an emergency situation, Chinese experts understand natural disasters, accidents, medical and social phenomena that have caused significant public damage and require emergency measures. The procedure for the PLA's participation in these situations provides for the involvement of "forces and means commensurate with the damage caused" to carry out "urgent and emergency rescue operations."
MILITARY THOUGHT
An analysis of the regulatory framework for the use of the PLA suggests that, adhering to a defense policy subordinate to the development and security strategy, the Chinese leadership can use military force in accordance with the principle of "active defense" solely to protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the state. An attack is only possible in response to an attack. However, the Chinese leadership, using the concept of "active defense", is able to interpret any threat to national interests as an attack and justify the use of its military force.
Open military theoretical literature, specialized magazines and publications are published in China, the analysis of which makes it possible to understand the logic of the development of military thought in the country. The most authoritative and at the same time accessible publications in the field of military studies include the publications "Science of Operations" (2006), as well as "Science of Military Strategy" (2013).
The authors of the publications note that the military policy of the People's Republic of China is aimed at creating conditions conducive to the implementation of the country's development plans, the purpose of which is the "great revival of the Chinese nation" and the transformation of China into a "modernized socialist state" by 2049, capable of influencing global and regional processes using force methods.
For researchers of Chinese military doctrine, the works of Chinese scientists published in the series "The Best Doctoral Dissertations of the Academy of Military Sciences of the People's Republic of China" are of particular interest.
Thus, in Colonel Xiu Kui's dissertation "Theory of strategic planning of mobilization in the interests of national defense", the main aspects of strategic planning of mobilization are considered, the need to improve strategic planning based on the challenges of the national security of the People's Republic of China at the present stage is revealed.
Senior Colonel Tan Lin, in his dissertation "Strategic decision-making in modern military strategy", considered the evolution of the model of political and military-strategic decision-making in China and other countries, noting that the most important role in the preparatory stage of decision-making is played by early study and assessment of the military capabilities of foreign countries. The author suggests diversifying the structure of Chinese organizations responsible for monitoring the military-political situation in the world.
An important place is occupied by works devoted to the study of warfare in new operating environments. For example, Colonel Cheng Yonghong in the monograph "Expanding the US presence in the space sector" analyzed the prospects for the use of outer space for military purposes, identified trends in increasing the US military potential in the rocket and space sphere.
The work of Colonel Liu Mohua "Concepts of US activities in outer space and cybernetic space" reveals trends in the expansion of the spheres of armed struggle and the impact of this process on the military-political situation in the world. The authors also note the need to develop components of the Armed Forces of the People's Republic of China responsible for conducting military operations in cyberspace.
HYBRID WARFARE
The monograph "Unlimited War" was widely distributed, in which senior PLA officers Qiao Liang and Wang Xiangsu outlined the Chinese concept of hybrid warfare.
The main content of the publication boils down to the thesis that the Chinese nation can defeat a technologically superior enemy (for example, the United States) using various means. Instead of direct military confrontation, the authors propose a means such as political war, which includes the use of legal instruments and economic means as a lever of pressure on the enemy, bypassing direct military action.
The authors draw attention to the fact that the most authoritative source conceptualizing the Chinese experience in achieving victory by non-military means is Sun Tzu's treatise "The Art of War", where the art of a commander is considered as an opportunity to achieve victory in a war without the use of military force.
Senior Colonel of the PLA Li Dapeng in his monograph "The Future War: the use of precision weapons in all theaters of military operations", continuing the ideas of the same Sun Tzu, focused on the fact that non-military methods of resolving armed conflicts, such as terrorism and radicalism, are becoming the first in world politics. According to the author, the strengthening of the potential of states will occur both at the power level and at the information level, through the use of the capabilities of the Internet and artificial intelligence (AI).
The publication of the monograph "Fundamentals of Strategic Communication" in 2011 should be considered an important stage in the development of Chinese military thought. The authors of the publication Bi Yantao and Wang Jinlin reveal the content of a new tool for influencing a potential enemy – strategic communication, which represents the projection of strategic values, interests and goals by the state into the consciousness of national and foreign target audiences. Junyu Zhou, PhD, believes that information and psychological operations have already become part of the modern war against the "three forces of evil": terrorism, separatism and extremism. The source of threats remains the actions of certain circles in Taiwan that do not want to recognize themselves as part of the "united China", as well as attempts to separate the territories of Tibet and the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR) from the PRC.
The PRC has organized the production of more than 20 specialized periodicals covering issues of a military-political and military-technical nature for a wide range of readers. More than 50% of them are subsidiaries of leading companies of the military-industrial complex of the People's Republic of China.
At the same time, measures are in place to limit their distribution in the People's Republic of China: subscription is possible at the post office if the address of residence of a citizen of the People's Republic of China coincides with his place of birth, through newsstands or through a subscription at the post office, as well as through Chinese online stores with the appropriate permission. Most publications do not have electronic versions, which is due to the policy of restricting access to materials.
FROM THE POSITION OF A "STRONG STATE"
The study of the activities of the Chinese leadership at the current stage indicates an increasing tendency to solve foreign policy problems from the position of a "strong state". Special attention is paid to ensuring readiness to defend expanding national interests with the involvement of the Armed Forces. According to the Chinese command, a further increase in the pace of China's military construction is possible due to military and military-technical cooperation with foreign countries.
Thus, an analysis of the evolution of the theoretical views of the Chinese leadership on ensuring military security shows that, despite the declarative reflection in normative legal acts of quite specific conditions determining the use of Armed Forces, it is not always possible to clearly define the boundaries of the transition to their use. Such an approach to legal regulation fully corresponds to the pragmatic position of the Chinese leadership: it becomes possible to gain the approval of the world community through the development of legal mechanisms in China and retain the opportunity to use national Armed forces, taking into account the conditions of a specific situation.
Vasily Ivanov
Vasily Ivanovich Ivanov is a journalist.