Exclusive | China to overhaul land troops in bid to transform world’s biggest army into nimble fighting force: sources
Strong resistance expected as old Soviet-model of organising army corps to be replaced with smaller-sized divisions, say sources
China will reorganise more than half of its 1.55 million land force troops, phasing out its army corps as it tries to mould a more nimble fighting force, sources familiar with the military said, adding that strong internal resistance to the change was expected.
Some of the existing 18 Army Corps will be turned into 25 to 30 divisions, they told the South China Morning Post. The size of a corp varies from 30,000 to 100,000 soldiers.
The approach was inherited from the Soviet Union, but it’s a bulky model no longer suited to the demands of modern warfare, which prizes modularity, according to a retired senior colonel based in Beijing.
The style of the US 101st Airborne Division is the best example that the PLA land forces will study
“This is a main trend in modern warfare. Even the Russian army has tried to learn from the US army by reducing the size of their troops, making land forces become more nimble and quick-response,” the veteran said.