On Tuesday, the United States (US) Department of Defense released its annual report on China’s military and security strategy, titled the ‘China Military Power Report’ (CMPR). The document covers “how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has frequently turned to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in support of its global ambitions, and provides an assessment of PLA capabilities” to underscore why China represents a growing challenge.
Below are some of the key takeaways from the Pentagon’s report about the Chinese military.
Expanding Chinese National Power to Transform International System
The report highlights “Beijing’s ambition to reform the prevailing international rules-based system” under the concept of a “community of common destiny,” led by initiatives like the Global Security Initiative and the Global Development Initiative, as China seeks to achieve “national rejuvenation” by its centenary in 2049.
It “offers Congress insight on the tenets of Beijing’s ambitions and intentions,” and details China’s strategy to “amass and harness all elements of its national power” to place China in a “leading position” as a competitor, especially with respect to the US, whom it believes to be “deploying a whole-of-government effort meant to contain China’s rise, which presents obstacles to its national strategy.”
The Pentagon added that, “the Chinese expansion will likely outpace potential developments by the nuclear forces of any adversary that could plausibly threaten the PRC ability to retaliate against a first strike.
— Gurbaksh Singh Chahal (@gchahal) November 30, 2022
Keeping this in mind, China has used multiple diplomatic tools last year in a bid to counter the US’ influence by highlighting the US’ withdrawal from Afghanistan and criticising US-led security partnerships, including the Quad (comprised of Australia, India, Japan, and the US) and AUKUS (made up of Australia, the United Kingdom, and the US)
“The COVID-19 pandemic also continued to be a driving force behind China’s foreign policy efforts in 2021, as Beijing sought to deflect blame for its initial response to the pandemic and continued its use of foreign medical assistance, including vaccine donations, to bolster its bilateral ties and advance its responsible great power narrative,” the document notes.
China has also increased its global footprint through its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to engage with African, Latin American, and Middle Eastern countries.
Increasing Chinese Military Coercion
The report highlights that the PLA adopted “more dangerous, coercive and aggressive actions” in the Indo-Pacific in 2021 and has continued that approach this year. Keeping this in mind, the Pentagon says “it is important to understand the contours of the PLA’s way of war, survey its current activities and capabilities, and assess its future military modernisation goals” as it follows the policy of “active defence.”
The report also mentions Chinese and Russian forces participating in large-scale combined military drills for the first time on Chinese soil as part of increasing cooperation between the two allies.
"The PRC is seeking to expand its overseas logistic and basing infrastructure to allow the PLA to project and sustain military power at greater distances. A global PLA...could disrupt US military operations." (XII) 5/
— Elbridge Colby (@ElbridgeColby) November 30, 2022
Furthermore, the People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force (PLARF) tested approximately 135 ballistic missiles last year, which the document notes was “more than the rest of the world combined, excluding ballistic missile employment in conflict zones.”
It is also building three solid-fueled intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) silo fields, which could contain at least 300 new ICBM silos.
Strengthening PLA Nuclear, Space and Counterspace Capabilities
The document notes, “Having purportedly achieved its 2020 modernisation goal, the PLA now sets its sights to 2027 with a goal to accelerate the integrated development of mechanisation, informatisation, and intelligentisation of China’s armed forces” in order to pursue Taiwan’s unification with mainland China.
It also reveals that China has continued to accelerate the modernisation, diversification, and expansion of its nuclear forces as a “strategic deterrent,” while “being reluctant to discuss the PLA’s developing nuclear, space, and cyberspace capabilities,” and therefore “negatively impacting global strategic stability.”
In this regard, the Department of Defense estimates that China’s operational nuclear warheads stockpile has surpassed 400, and is likely to reach 1,500 by 2035, by when it plans to “basically complete modernisation” of its forces.
By promoting the “China threat”, the US seeks to justify its expansion of nuclear arsenal and perpetuation of its military predominance. pic.twitter.com/QyJiMp6Xqr
— Spokesperson发言人办公室 (@MFA_China) November 30, 2022
“The PLA continues to acquire and develop a range of counterspace capabilities and related technologies, including kinetic-kill missiles, ground-based lasers, and orbiting space robots, as well as expanding space surveillance capabilities, which can monitor objects in space within their field of view and enable counterspace actions,” the report says.
However, Chinese defence experts believe that these capabilities could be designed as a means to “blind and deafen the enemy.”
Intensifying Diplomatic, Economic, Political and Military Pressure Against Taiwan
The PLA will likely continue to increase military pressure—in concert with diplomatic, information and economic pressure—in an attempt to compel Taiwan toward unification.
China’s Territorial Disputes in Context
The report mentions tensions between China and India along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), which escalated on 15 June, 2020 after a border skirmish in the Galwan Valley between the Indian Army and the PLA led to the death of 20 Indian soldiers and at least 40 Chinese troops. It was the deadliest clash between the two neighbours in 46 years.
The US noted that China has “continued to amass forces and build military infrastructure along the LAC” since the incident.
“Negotiation made minimal progress as both sides resist losing perceived advantages on the border,” it said. However, China wants to prevent border tensions with India in order to cause New Delhi to partner more closely with Washington. Moreover, Beijing has also warned US officials not to interfere in its relations with New Delhi.
#Pentagon @DeptofDefense report on #China Military Power says re #EasternLadakh friction ramifications - China seeks to prevent border tensions from causing #India to partner more closely w/ #US. Chinese officials warned US officials to not interfere w/ its relationship w/ India. pic.twitter.com/F5sJnt0PF2
— Maha Siddiqui (@SiddiquiMaha) November 30, 2022
Additionally, the document contains China’s disputes with Japan related to contesting and overlapping claims to exclusive economic zones in the East China Sea, and the Senkaku Islands (which China refers to as the Diaoyu). Meanwhile, China maintains friendly ties with North Korea, which is nearing its seventh nuclear test and its first since 2017.
Developing PLA Military Strategy
According to the report, China is “aggressively developing capabilities to “dissuade, deter, or, if ordered, defeat third-party intervention in the Indo-Pacific” and also building strategies to conduct military operations deeper into the region, and in some cases, globally.
The Pentagon claims that The PLA has set its sights on 2027 as a landmark year, particularly for Taiwan reunification. In this regard, the PLA in 2021 began discussing a new core operational concept called “Multi-Domain Precision Warfare,” intended to leverage its command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C4ISR) network to rapidly identify key vulnerabilities in an adversary’s operational system and launch precision strikes against those vulnerabilities.
Increasing Coercion in the Taiwan Strait
The report points out that throughout 2021, the PLA increased its “provocative and destabilising actions in and around the Taiwan Strait, including increased flights into Taiwan’s self-declared Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) and conducting island seizure exercises around one of Taiwan’s outlying islands.”
“Although China publicly advocates for peaceful unification with Taiwan, it has never renounced the use of military force,” the report stresses.
China's defence budget vs other countries in the region.
— Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) November 30, 2022
Source: Pentagon pic.twitter.com/cKhwVHJWCD
Increasing Unsafe and Unprofessional PLA Operational Behaviour
As per the report, PLA naval vessels and aircraft have engaged in a “sharp increase in unsafe and unprofessional behaviour in the Indo-Pacific, including lasing, aerobatics, discharging objects and activity that impinge upon the ability of nearby aircraft to maneuver safely.”
These activities appear to target US military aircraft and naval vessels, as well as those of our key allies, risking a major incident or accident in the region.
Conclusion
In its National Defense Strategy last month, the US described China to be the “most consequential and systemic challenge to US national security and a free and open international system.”
Nevertheless, the US will now “continue to urge China to be more transparent about its military modernisation program.”