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Thursday 12 February 2015
China ‘not ready to win wars’, says US report
Corruption, poor-quality personnel and outdated command structure among problems faced by the PLA, according to a study commissioned by a US congressional committee
Corruption, poor-quality personnel and outdated command structure among problems faced by the PLA, according to a study commissioned by a US congressional committee
Bloomberg 12 February 2015
China’s military is not ready to win wars despite spending heavily to modernise, according to a report commissioned by a US congressional committee.
The People’s Liberation Army suffers from potentially serious weaknesses that could limit its ability to conduct operations required to fight and win future conflicts, the report by the Rand Corporation, a Santa Monica-based research group said.
“Although the PLA’s capabilities have increased dramatically, its remaining weaknesses increase the risk of failure to successfully perform the missions the Chinese Communist Party leaders may task it to perform,” the report said.
The PLA has an outdated command structure, poor quality personnel, a lack of professionalism and is hindered by corruption, the report said.
Its other weakness is its combat capability, which covers logistical flaws, insufficient strategic airlift capabilities, limited numbers of special-mission aircraft and deficiencies in fleet air defence and anti-submarine warfare.
China has been modernising its army as its economic expansion accelerated in the early to mid-1990s, with double-digit spending increases on the armed forces in most years.
President Xi Jinping, also chairman of the Central Military Commission, has ordered the PLA to prepare itself to win local wars supported by modern technology and by rooting out corruption.
The Rand report said the PLA’s leaders were aware of its shortcomings, with military analysts suggesting it was still unable to cope with the demands of winning a war under “informationised” conditions.
These shortcomings contribute to a large gap between China and the militaries of developed countries, especially the US, the report said.
The paper highlighted the challenges faced by the PLA Navy, whose new surface vessels and submarines “boast impressive capabilities comparable with those of a modern world-class navy”.
The navy faces challenges when it comes to integrating complex modern weapons and its personnel are not fully equipped to operate and maintain them, it said.
The air force faces similar problems: coping with multiple generations of aircraft, a shortage of key special-mission aircraft and “unrealistic” training.
A further challenge comes from China’s defence industry, which, while having made tremendous progress, suffers from corruption, lack of competition, entrenched monopolies, delays and cost overruns, quality control problems, bureaucratic fragmentation, an outdated acquisition system and restricted access to external sources of technology and expertise, the report said.
The report concludes that US military planners need to improve their understanding of the PLA’s shortcomings so they can ensure the United States and its allies are able to prevent China from using force to achieve its policy objectives.
China has the second-biggest military budget in the world after the US, which spent about four times more on defence than Beijing last year.
China is using its growing military muscle to assert its territorial claims and is embroiled in disputes with Vietnam and the Philippines in the South China Sea that have led to clashes.
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China ‘not ready to win wars’, says US report
Corruption, poor-quality personnel and outdated command structure among problems faced by the PLA, according to a study commissioned by a US congressional committee
Bloomberg
12 February 2015
China’s military is not ready to win wars despite spending heavily to modernise, according to a report commissioned by a US congressional committee.
The People’s Liberation Army suffers from potentially serious weaknesses that could limit its ability to conduct operations required to fight and win future conflicts, the report by the Rand Corporation, a Santa Monica-based research group said.
“Although the PLA’s capabilities have increased dramatically, its remaining weaknesses increase the risk of failure to successfully perform the missions the Chinese Communist Party leaders may task it to perform,” the report said.
The PLA has an outdated command structure, poor quality personnel, a lack of professionalism and is hindered by corruption, the report said.
Its other weakness is its combat capability, which covers logistical flaws, insufficient strategic airlift capabilities, limited numbers of special-mission aircraft and deficiencies in fleet air defence and anti-submarine warfare.
China has been modernising its army as its economic expansion accelerated in the early to mid-1990s, with double-digit spending increases on the armed forces in most years.
President Xi Jinping, also chairman of the Central Military Commission, has ordered the PLA to prepare itself to win local wars supported by modern technology and by rooting out corruption.
The Rand report said the PLA’s leaders were aware of its shortcomings, with military analysts suggesting it was still unable to cope with the demands of winning a war under “informationised” conditions.
These shortcomings contribute to a large gap between China and the militaries of developed countries, especially the US, the report said.
The paper highlighted the challenges faced by the PLA Navy, whose new surface vessels and submarines “boast impressive capabilities comparable with those of a modern world-class navy”.
The navy faces challenges when it comes to integrating complex modern weapons and its personnel are not fully equipped to operate and maintain them, it said.
The air force faces similar problems: coping with multiple generations of aircraft, a shortage of key special-mission aircraft and “unrealistic” training.
A further challenge comes from China’s defence industry, which, while having made tremendous progress, suffers from corruption, lack of competition, entrenched monopolies, delays and cost overruns, quality control problems, bureaucratic fragmentation, an outdated acquisition system and restricted access to external sources of technology and expertise, the report said.
The report concludes that US military planners need to improve their understanding of the PLA’s shortcomings so they can ensure the United States and its allies are able to prevent China from using force to achieve its policy objectives.
China has the second-biggest military budget in the world after the US, which spent about four times more on defence than Beijing last year.
China is using its growing military muscle to assert its territorial claims and is embroiled in disputes with Vietnam and the Philippines in the South China Sea that have led to clashes.
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