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Description

China’s latest round of military reforms is driven primarily by Xi Jinping’s ambition to reshape the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to improve its ability to win informationized [xinxihua, 信息化] wars and to ensure that it remains loyal to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The reforms are unprecedented in their ambition and in the scale and scope of the organizational changes. Virtually every part of the PLA now reports to different leaders, has had its mission and responsibilities changed, has lost or gained subordinate units, or has undergone a major internal reorganization. The relationships between and among the Central Military Commission (CMC) departments, offices, and commissions, the services, and the theater commands (TCs) have all changed. The reforms established new joint command and control mechanisms and thus have important implications for how the PLA conducts operations within and beyond China’s borders.

Document Type

Policy Brief

Region(s)

Asia and the Pacific

Topic(s)

Chinese Military, National Security, Defense Policy

Publication Date

7-2020

Publication

Strategic Forum

Publisher

National Defense University Press

City

Washington, DC

Keywords

PLA overseas operations, Chinese military command and control, People's Liberation Army (PLA) joint C2, PLA power projection, Chinese military reform, expeditionary capabilities, joint operations structure, Theater commands (TCs), Central Military Commission (CMC), far seas operations, PLA global missions

Beyond Borders: PLA Command and Control of Overseas Operations

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