What’s driving Chinese President Xi Jinping’s military modernisation push?
World-class army seen as key component of national rejuvenation, but political power also part of the equation
From a rebel force 90 years ago to today’s multipronged military machine, China’s army – the world’s biggest – is marching rapidly into a new era to the drumbeat of President Xi Jinping.
The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) showed off the hardware achievements of its military modernisation at an anniversary parade in Inner Mongolia on Sunday, with analysts saying the show of force reflected Xi’s ambition to emulate the power of predecessors Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping.
Xi, the Communist Party general secretary who also chairs the PLA’s controlling Central Military Commission, realised that the army’s capabilities were threatened by corruption and poor morale soon after he took the helm in late 2012 and he introduced a string of reforms to rectify the situation.
He has combined national rejuvenation, military modernisation, ideological purity and a crackdown on graft in a potent mix of appeals designed to boost the army’s fighting spirit.
“To achieve the dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, we must quicken the pace of building the people’s army into a world-class army,” Xi said in a speech in Beijing on Tuesday marking the army’s 90th anniversary. “To build a strong army, we must unswervingly adhere to the party’s absolute leadership over the army.”
The PLA was not well-equipped in its early days, but it was known for its discipline and fighting spirit.