Internal call to shake up backward Chinese army

A LEADING Chinese army figure said the country’s military thinking was old-fashioned, and the world’s biggest army needed to learn from the US about being a 21st century fighting force.

There have been long-standing tensions between the US and China about China’s military spending. Chinese defence spending, largely focused on reunification with self-ruled Taiwan, has grown in double-digits every year, but is dwarfed by US spending.

The comments, carried in the Liberation Army Daily, was published as China marked the 65th anniversary of victory in the war against Japan between 1937 and 1945.

It is the latest public airing of what is believed to be a hard-fought internal conflict about the future of the largest standing army in the world, with about two million soldiers. “History and reality have shown again and again that a country which does not have a world view is a backward one. A military which lacks global vision is one without hope.

“As there is a rather large influence of conservative thinking in traditional Chinese culture, the task of renewing the culture and thinking of our military will be extremely arduous,” the commentary ran.

The broadside from China’s military elite can be read as a sign of the People’s Liberation Army asserting its importance to the leadership, and noting its contribution to the modernisation of the Communist Party.

Reforms to date have meant more advanced fighter jets, submarines and weaponry to destroy aircraft carriers.

China has been slimming down its military for the past few years, trying to focus more on effectiveness rather than sheer numbers. Central to the military’s ambition is the the Dongfeng 21C missile. This could force US aircraft carriers to keep a greater distance if it is successfully developed into an anti-ship ballistic missile.

“It is an occasion for the Chinese people to celebrate Japan’s surrender and commemorate national heroes who sacrificed their lives for the victory of the brutal war, which caused an estimated 35 million casualties, including military and civilian, dead and wounded,” ran the Xinhua agency.