China urged to speed up self-reliance in military tech as Western sanctions render old model ‘unsustainable’

‘Core technologies’ for modern weaponry can no longer be bought or waited for in a fast-changing world, Academy of Military Sciences researcher warns
Speedy and low-cost production is key to achieving modernisation goals for the PLA, Zhao Xun writes in state-backed magazine

China’s military

Amber Wangin Beijing

Published: 7:08pm, 11 Apr, 2023

Why you can trust SCMP

China should reduce red tape and cut costs to achieve self-reliance in weapons development, as Western sanctions on hi-tech components render the old ways “unsustainable”, a researcher at Beijing’s Academy of Military Sciences has advised.

“The pace of major global changes unprecedented in the past century is accelerating … and some Western countries continue to increase their efforts to suppress and contain the development of our country’s hi-tech industries,” Zhao Xun, a researcher at the academy’s Institute of Systems Engineering, wrote in an article for a state-backed magazine.

“The old path of following and imitating others for the development of our military’s weapons and equipment has become unsustainable,” he warned, calling for independent innovation and development to urgently achieve self-reliance in the fast-changing global scenario.

China’s stated aim is to have a fully modernised military by 2035 and become a world-class military power by 2049.

Zhang’s article, published in the ruling Communist Party mouthpiece Study Times on Monday, comes as those aims are challenged – with the US-China trade and tech war reaching new heights.

02:42

Biden tours new Taiwanese chip-making plant in Arizona, fans US-China semiconductor rivalry

Washington has in recent years stepped up efforts to hobble strategic rival China’s hi-tech sector with sanctions and export restrictions, especially with regard to advanced semiconductors.

The moves restricting access to core US know-how aim not only to contain Chinese technology market players but also its chips sector – essential for everything from mobile phones and self-driving cars to fighter jets and artificial intelligence weaponry.

In October, the administration of US President Joe Biden imposed sweeping restrictions on exports of advanced computing and semiconductor manufacturing components to China, citing national security concerns over their likely military application.

The US has also secured deals with allies the Netherlands and Japan to restrict exports of advanced chip-making machinery to China.

‘China won’t just swallow this’: Beijing envoy warns Dutch over chip curbs

In the article, Zhao argued that “the key and core technologies can’t be bought, required from others, and be waited for”.

Reflecting on the history of Chinese weapons production during decades of isolation as a nascent communist nation, Zhao said: “We have basically developed all the equipment that had to be independently innovated due to the foreign blockade from the very beginning; while most of the equipment that rely on import and imitation have resulted in the ‘bottleneck’ in that field.”

He also highlighted specific areas of “shortcomings” where independent control needed to be achieved “as soon as possible” – including raw materials, essential components, and various basic electromechanical products.

President Xi Jinping has in recent years made multiple calls to boost domestic basic research, emphasising the need for technological independence at a time of intense international rivalry.

Beijing is reportedly preparing a 1 trillion yuan (US$143 billion) support package for the Chinese semiconductor industry to counter the impact of US sanctions.

Xi tells China’s military to be ready for war in uncertain and unstable times

According to Zhao, the main hurdle for military equipment development was not talent, technology or resources, but “shortcomings in management concepts and methods”.

The country should give up its slow and long-term approach to hi-tech equipment, increase efficiency and achieve high-speed development, Zhao advised.

Underlining the importance of low-cost weapons production, he said: “On the surface, future high-end and large-scale wars would be battles between various types of ammunition and various weapons systems, but the real decisive factor for victory would be the supply and support chain behind it.”

Therefore, the concept of low-cost development should be applied in all production processes, from design and manufacturing to the use and maintenance of weapons.