Opinion | Why a leaner, meaner PLA must be sensitive to worries about China’s military rise
- The PLA of the future will be ‘more capable of projecting its power to secure China’s national interests in the region and globally’, writes Collin Koh
Much of what needs to be said of the recent report on the People’s Liberation Army downsizing has been said. As part of the “transformational changes” undertaken so far, China’s army now accounts for less than 50 per cent of all PLA troops, with almost half of the non-combatant units made redundant and the officer corps slashed by 30 per cent.
By contrast, the navy, air force, rocket force and strategic support force combined now surpass the army in overall numbers.
Back in 2015, President Xi Jinping announced plans to reduce the military by 300,000 troops. But it was not the first time the PLA had taken measures to slash and reorganise its manpower.
In 1985, 1997 and 2003, Beijing announced it would reduce headcount by a million, half a million and 200,000 troops respectively – with the army being the focus of this reduction effort.
Since then, the process continues to see the streamlining of not only the army but other supporting institutions, such as those for training, while boosting the proportion of other services.
Through such transformative shifts, the PLA is trying to become a leaner, meaner and more professional force.