Military Legal System
During the Tenth Five-Year Plan period, the Standing Committee of the NPC, the State Council and
the CMC, exercising their prescribed functions and powers, formulated and revised 99 military
laws and regulations. The general headquarters/departments, military area commands, Navy, Air
Force and Second Artillery Force formulated and revised nearly 900 military rules and
regulations. In 2006, the CMC began to implement its law-making program for the Eleventh
Five-Year Plan period. In a period of five years, a military legal system will take shape which
covers multiple aspects, and is coherent, scientific, closely knit and well-designed.
As military courts exercise the function of civil trial within the military, military
procuratorates have begun to conduct civil prosecution on a trial basis and supervise civil
trials in the military in accordance with the law. In line with the regulations on the people's
supervisory system practiced by civil procuratorates, military procuratorates have started to
introduce, on a trial basis, a system of servicemen's supervisors to strengthen supervision over
investigation of misconduct on duty. In conformity with the requirements of the state's
procedural law, a new servicemen's jury system has been established, which specifies the
selection of jury members and the procedure for the performance of their duties. In keeping with
the state's judicial system, the PLA has instituted a specialized rank system for military judges
and procurators which consists of 11 grades at three levels. This has enhanced the professional
performance of the military judicial personnel.
In recent years, based on the experience gained from appointing military lawyers at the three
levels of combined corps, division and brigade in the Army, units at and above the brigade level
in the Second Artillery Force have also started to be staffed with military lawyers. The General
Armaments Department and the Navy have set up professional legal advisory offices concerning
national defense patents and maritime issues. Military lawyers have played an active role in
providing support to commanding officers and organs in decision-making, defending defendants in
criminal trials, and undertaking civil cases to protect the legitimate rights and interests of
military units and personnel.
Military Institutional Education
Under the unified leadership of the CMC, the PLA institutional education is managed at two
levels: by the general headquarters/departments and by the military area commands (Navy, Air
Force or Second Artillery Force). The four general headquarters/departments provide overall
guidance for all PLA educational institutions, and the General Staff Headquarters administers
military education. The development goal of military educational institutions is to establish and
improve a new school system with distinct military features to shift priority from education of
officer candidates for academic credentials to pre-assignment education. The new system takes
pre-assignment educational institutions as the main form, and makes a distinction between these
two types of education. The PLA has 67 military educational institutions, which are divided into
two types: those for academic credentials and those for pre-assignment education. The former
offers undergraduate education for pre-commission officers and graduate education for officers.
The latter consists of elementary, intermediate and advanced level institutions and NCO schools,
and offers pre-assignment training and rotational training for active-duty officers and NCOs.
Some pre-assignment educational institutions also offer graduate courses in military science. At
the same time, 112 regular institutions of higher learning in China undertake the task of
training defense students, thus gradually increasing the number of military officers trained in
civilian educational institutions.
The PLA endeavors to improve the overall performance of military educational institutions through
focused and coordinated development. It has launched a project for establishing key military
colleges and schools in the Eleventh Five-Year Plan period. It continues to focus efforts on
building a number of institutions and research centers for disciplines and specialties that are
important in building an informationized military and winning informationized wars. A new round
of reform in teaching is underway to improve the training target models for officers in different
fields and at different levels, and to develop new programs and curricula for the training of
military personnel. The PLA is also improving the information network for military training, and
has built more virtual laboratories, digital libraries and digital campuses to provide distance
learning and online teaching and training. In graduate education, the focus is shifted from
academic-oriented to practice-oriented, from emphasis on quantity to emphasis on quality, and
from a relatively closed-door approach to a more open and diversified approach. The PLA now has
41 educational institutions authorized to award doctor's degrees and 60 to award master's
degrees.
Management System of Military Cadres
In 2005, the PLA began to reform the evaluation, selection and appointment system for military
cadres, and to institute a system to evaluate commanding officers. It conducts both evaluation
and examination in selecting leading officers at the level of deputy regimental commanders for
combat troops. It has improved the regulations on reserve cadres, and works to establish a
long-term mechanism to select and train outstanding young cadres. In March 2006, with the
approval of the CMC, the four general headquarters/departments jointly promulgated the Provisions
of the PLA on Rewarding Technical Experts, which gives awards and allowances to military
technical experts.
In June 2005, the State Council and the CMC promulgated the Regulations of the PLA on Contract
Civilians, deciding to introduce a system of employing contract civilians to fill some support
posts in the military, so that active-duty officers, who are limited in number, mainly take up
command and combat posts. The regulations contain specific provisions on the nature and status of
contract civilians, the procedures of their employment, and the coordination of the civil and
military authorities' relevant policies. In 2006, the PLA started the employment of contract
civilians.
Officers and non-commissioned officers transferred to civilian work are resettled in one of the
following two ways: state-planned job assignment, and finding jobs by themselves. The State
Council has an office for overseeing the nationwide resettlement of such officers. The provinces
(autonomous regions or municipalities directly under the central government) have corresponding
offices for resettling such officers in their respective administrative areas. The General
Political Department is in charge of PLA-wide transfer of officers and non-commissioned officers
to civilian work, and Party committees and political organs at and above the regiment level are
responsible for transferring officers to civilian work in their own units. The provincial
military commands (garrison commands at the same level) are responsible for turning over PLA
officers and non-commissioned officers transferred to civilian work in their respective
provinces, autonomous regions or municipalities directly under the central government. In 2005,
the state and the PLA began to deepen the reform and adjustment of the policies on resettling
officers and non-commissioned officers transferred to civilian work.
Supporting the Government and Loving the People
The PLA attaches great importance to mass work, taking supporting the government and loving the
people as its major thrust. The political organs of the four general headquarters/departments and
the military area commands, the Navy, Air Force and Second Artillery Force all have offices for
mass work. The political organs of corps, divisions (brigades) and regiments also have special
officers in charge of such work. These offices and officers are responsible for maintaining
contacts and coordination with governments at all levels. Education in supporting the government
and loving the people is conducted PLA-wide. The PLA participates in national economic
development, emergency rescue and disaster relief, and public welfare activities.
In the past two years, the engineering troops of the Army, Navy and Air Force have taken part in
more than 430 key construction projects for transportation, hydropower, communication and energy
infrastructure. The PLA has assisted in building new socialist villages in the countryside, and
provided regular assistance to poor farmers in more than 19,000 villages. It has helped build
over 48,000 small public projects such as water-saving irrigation projects, drinking water
projects for both people and livestock, roads, and hydropower projects, bringing immediate
benefits to nearly 800,000 people. In addition, it has helped build or enlarge 211 primary and
secondary schools, enabling 142,000 school dropouts to return to class. PLA troops stationed in
China's western region have taken part in such ecological engineering projects as the
construction of shelterbelts and the improvement of small drainage areas. They have planted 210
million trees and sown grass on more than 13 million sq m of land. PLA hospitals have established
regular assistance relations with more than 400 county or township hospitals in the western
region. They have helped train key members of the medical staff, made rounds of visits offering
free medical consultation and treatment, and donated medical equipment and medicine. The PLA and
PAPF have dispatched over 340,000 troops to take part in more than 2,800 emergency rescue and
disaster-relief operations, involving more than 40,000 vehicles, flown more than 2,000 sorties
(including the use of helicopters), evacuated over 3.4 million people and prevented economic
losses of several billion yuan. At the end of 2006, the PLA donated 230 million yuan and over
930,000 cotton-padded clothes and quilts to disaster- and poverty-stricken areas.
In June 2005, the State Council and the CMC promulgated the Regulations on Participation of the
PLA in Emergency Rescue and Disaster Relief, prescribing the PLA's main tasks, coordination with
local people's governments, limits of authority and procedures for employing troops, joint
command with local authorities, preparations and readiness, financial and material support, etc.,
for such operations.
V. People's Armed Police Force
The People's Armed Police Force (PAPF) is charged with the fundamental task of safeguarding
national security, maintaining social stability and ensuring that the people live and work in
peace and contentment. It strives to make itself a powerful, disciplined and politically reliable
force.
Structure and Organization
As a component of China's armed forces and subordinate to the State Council, the PAPF is under
the dual leadership of the State Council and the CMC. The State Council exercises leadership over
the PAPF through relevant functional departments, assigns routine tasks to it, decides its size
and number of organizations, and is responsible for its command, operations, and financial and
material support. The PAPF has an independent budgetary status in the financial expenditure of
the state. The CMC is responsible for the PAPF's organizational structure, management of
officers, command, training and political work. It exercises leadership over the PAPF through the
four general headquarters/departments. In terms of conducting public security operations and
relevant capability building, the PAPF General Headquarters is under the leadership and command
of the Ministry of Public Security, and the PAPF units at and below the contingent level are
under the leadership and command of the public security organs at the same level. The PAPF has a
total force of 660,000.
The PAPF consists mainly of the internal security force and forces guarding gold mines, forests,
water and electricity supply, and communications. The border security, firefighting and security
guard forces are also components of the PAPF. The PAPF General Headquarters is the leading and
commanding organ that directs and administers the internal security force and forces guarding
gold mine, forest, water and electricity, and communications, etc., and provides guidance to
other forces subordinate to the PAPF. Under it are the headquarters, political department and
logistics department. The PAPF has one commander-in-chief, one first political commissar (assumed
concurrently by the Minister of Public Security), one political commissar, and several deputy
commanders-in-chief and deputy political commissars. The PAPF internal security force is composed
of contingents at the level of the province (autonomous region or municipality directly under the
central government) and armed police divisions. Contingents, detachments and squadrons are
instituted at the province, prefecture, and county levels, respectively. The armed police
divisions have regiments, battalions and companies in battle order, which are stationed in a
number of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government.
The forces guarding gold mines, forests, water and electricity supply, and communications have
their own headquarters, which function as their leading and commanding organs. The PAPF General
Headquarters has an educational institution directly under it. The contingent headquarters and
the headquarters of the forces guarding gold mines, forests, water and electricity supply, and
communications have elementary command colleges under them.
Basic Tasks
In peacetime, the PAPF is tasked to perform guard duties, handle emergencies, combat terrorism,
and participate in and support national economic development. In wartime, it assists the PLA in
defensive operations.
Every day, more than 260,000 PAPF servicemen are on guard duty. Through the combined use of
manpower, facilities and technologies, the PAPF has effectively enhanced the efficiency of guard
duties and security in recent years. The PAPF annually handles an average of over 100 cases of
attempted attacks against guarded targets and escape attempts by detained suspects and imprisoned
criminals, organizes thousands of important temporary duties, and ensures the security of
important international and national conferences and large-scale events, in cooperation with the
government departments concerned. Adhering to the guidelines and principles for handling
emergencies, and using proper methods and tactics, the PAPF effectively safeguards the
fundamental interests of the people, social stability and the dignity of the law. The PAPF
anti-terrorism units closely follow the state's anti-terrorism guidelines and principles, and
enhance their combat-readiness training. They have been involved in the successful handling of
cases of bombing attempts and kidnapping incidents. The various units of the PAPF take an active
part in efforts to keep local order, and assist the public security departments in catching and
arresting criminal suspects and cracking down on organized criminal gangs.
The PAPF gold mine force has completed 38 geological prospecting projects in a dozen provinces
and autonomous regions, and found some rich gold deposits. In the last two years, the PAPF forest
force has put out 552 forest or prairie fires, protecting valuable natural resources. The PAPF
water and electricity force has taken part in the construction of 21 key national projects,
including the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, the West-East Natural Gas Transmission Project, the
South-North Water Diversion Project, and major hydropower projects. The PAPF communications force
is responsible for the maintenance of the Xinjiang-Tibet Highway and the Sichuan-Tibet Highway,
and has undertaken the construction of national high-grade highways, extra-long tunnels and
bridges. Those projects built by the PAPF communications force are all up to standards. In the
past two years, 224,000 PAPF troops have participated in 2,320 emergency rescue and disaster
relief operations, and rescued and evacuated 250,000 people in disaster-stricken areas.
Force Building
The PAPF is working to strengthen itself through science and technology. It is enhancing staff
competence, and conducting strict management so that its personnel can fully perform their
duties. Using the national information infrastructure, the PAPF has established a preliminary
system of three-level integrated information networks, linking general headquarters with the
grass-roots squadrons. It has made progress in real-time command and control, management of
duties through visual means, networked education and training, and office automation. The PAPF
possesses a basically complete range of equipment through R&D and procurement of urgently needed
weaponry and equipment. It has set up and improved a distinctive mechanism for the selection,
training and employment of officers and NCOs. In particular, priority is given to the training of
inter-disciplinary personnel. The PAPF conducts mission-oriented training on a priority basis to
better perform guard duties, manage emergencies and combat terrorism. It participated in China's
"Great Wall-2003" and "Great Wall II" anti-terrorism exercises, and the SCO's "Joint-2003"
exercise, and sponsored the "Guard-04" and "Guard-06" exercises to deal with large-scale
emergencies. The PAPF runs its forces strictly and pursuant to the law. It stresses that leaders
make decisions, administrative organs conduct management, and officers and men perform their
duties strictly in accordance with the law. As a result, its overall performance has been greatly
boosted.
The PAPF is steadily improving its logistical support system based on self-support and
supplemented by social and PLA support to raise the efficiency of integrated support. It runs a
crisis response support system covering the three echelons of the general headquarters,
contingents (divisions) and detachments (regiments), to better respond to emergencies, and
unexpected and complex situations. It promotes standardized and institutional logistical
management by exploitation of IT and uniformly standardizes its facility configurations, work
procedures, operating mechanisms and management requirements. The PAPF is pursuing reforms in
housing, procurement of bulk materials and project procurement, medical care, and outsources
food, barracks and bedding and clothing services.
In recent years, the PAPF has conducted friendly exchanges with the armed police forces, military
police, internal security forces, public security forces and other similar forces of more than 30
countries to draw on each other's practices and cooperate in conducting anti-terrorism training.
Its medical personnel, as part of Chinese rescue teams, have participated in disaster-relief
missions in the aftermath of the earthquakes in Iran, Pakistan and Indonesia, and the tsunami in
the Indian Ocean.
VI. National Defense Mobilization and Reserve Force
China, responding to new developments in modern warfare and the needs of national security, is
reinforcing national defense mobilization and reserve force building to enhance its capabilities
of rapid mobilization, sustained support, comprehensive protection and swift shift from a
peacetime to wartime footing.
Mobilization of the Armed Forces
China's mobilization of the armed forces includes the mobilization of manpower, weaponry and
equipment, as well as logistical materials. The main tasks of the PLA's mobilization are as
follows: to formulate plans for wartime troop mobilization and support according to operational
plans, carry out pre-regimentation of reservists into active units and organization of reserve
units, and expand and form units according to wartime structure and organization upon the state's
issuance of a mobilization order. The main tasks of the PAPF's mobilization are to formulate
mobilization and support plans based on the PAPF's possible wartime tasks, carry out
pre-regimentation of reservists and adjustment, expansion and reorganization of units, and adjust
the organizational system or form or expand units according to designated tasks after the state
issues a mobilization order. The main tasks of the militia's mobilization are to call up
militiamen, adjust and reinforce organizations, issue weapons and equipment, carry out pre-war
training, and provide support in accordance with the needs of wartime manpower mobilization and
plans for participating in warfare and supporting the front.
Acting on the directives of the State Council and the CMC, the General Staff Headquarters
organizes and conducts mobilization of the armed forces with the assistance of the General
Political Department, General Logistics Department and General Armaments Department as well as
the relevant government departments. The Navy, Air Force, and Second Artillery Force are
responsible for the mobilization of their respective forces. The military area commands,
provincial military commands and local Party committees and governments at different levels are
responsible for the mobilization of reserve forces within their respective jurisdictions.
By maintaining a lean standing army, improving the reserve service system, setting up reserve
units, designating manpower replenishment areas, pre-positioning equipment and supplies, and
organizing civil-military mobilization rehearsals, China has ensured the smooth mobilization of
the armed forces, enabling the latter to deter or defuse security crises with even a downsized
standing force. In recent years, China has accelerated the adjustment and reform of the
organization and structure of the militia and the reserve forces and increased the number of
reservists with high-tech backgrounds, and strengthened the reserve forces of the Navy, Air Force
and Second Artillery Force. As a result, the level of the general quality of the backup forces of
national defense has been raised notably.
Mobilization of the National Economy
The basic policies for the mobilization of the national economy are:
· To boost economic mobilization based on China's development strategy and its economic
strength, and incorporate the development of the defense economy into that of the national ec
onomy;
· To make economic mobilization a bridge between China's economic development and available
national defense capacities, and strike a balance between military and civilian needs and between
peacetime and wartime needs in economic restructuring, to keep the national defense economy at a
proper level in peacetime;
· To speed up the development and application of new and high technologies and dual-purpose
technologies, and give priority to the mobilization of high-tech products and the reserves of
high technology, to raise the overall scientific and technological level of economic
mobilization;
· To build an organizational structure, mechanism and legal system of economic mobilization in
keeping with the socialist market economy for dealing with both wars and emergencies in
accordance with the assigned functions of economic mobilization, to serve economic development in
peacetime and respond rapidly in cases of emergency or war; and
· To pursue the principle of self-defense by the whole nation and improve the capacity of
economic mobilization to meet the needs of defensive operations under conditions of
informationization.
The primary objective is to establish a complete economic mobilization system with the dual
functions of responding to both wars and emergencies, and to set up an economic mobilization base
that is an integral part of China's economy to meet the economic needs of local wars and
unexpected incidents.
With the rapid growth of China's economy, the capacity of its economic mobilization has been
steadily raised. In building information and communications systems, highways, railways, bridges,
tunnels, airports, ports, docks and major urban infrastructures, China pays close attention to
the requirements of national defense, and ensures that peacetime needs and wartime needs are
properly balanced. In working to set up a mechanism of economic mobilization for responding to
both wars and emergencies, China has set up a system of plans for economic mobilization that
takes both peacetime and wartime needs into consideration. It has established economic
mobilization centers in the machine-building, weaponry, aviation, space, shipbuilding and
chemical industries, and has optimized the mobilization structure and layout. It has basically
completed a survey on the potential of economic mobilization and set up an information system for
economic mobilization management by the state and a number of provinces and municipalities
directly under the central government. As a component of the national emergency response force,
economic mobilization offices at different levels have established a mechanism for contacts
between economic mobilization offices and emergency reaction management offices to provide
support for handling public emergencies and ensure public security.
Civil Air Defense
Civil air defense (CAD), air defense of critical areas and field air defense constitute China's
homeland defense structure. The tasks of the CAD in the new era are to protect the people and
their property and China's economic development in wartime, and carry out disaster prevention and
relief and handle public unexpected incidents in peacetime. The CAD expenses are born by the
state and the public. The state has promulgated the Civil Air Defense Law, and the people's
governments at various levels have formulated and improved corresponding CAD rules and
regulations. CAD work is incorporated into plans for economic and social development by the
people's governments at and above the county level.
China's CAD capabilities in preparations against war, integrated urban protection and public
unexpected incident response have been greatly enhanced in recent years. Interconnected and
interoperable communications networks for command and warning at the provincial, city and county
levels have been basically established, and urban air defense early-warning networks have been
improved. Over 85 percent of areas in major cities are covered by air-defense sirens. Most of the
key CAD cities have CAD command posts. All large and medium-sized cities have protection and
rescue contingents for emergency rescue, rush repair, medical aid, fire fighting, maintenance of
order, chemical defense, epidemic prevention, communications and transportation. Short-term and
full-time training courses are conducted, and emergency rescue drills for handling disasters are
organized to help the public acquire CAD knowledge and skills. CAD courses are included in school
teaching programs and curricula. Volunteer CAD teams have been formed in some factories, mines,
enterprises and communities.
Militia Force Building
China's militia is under the unified direction of the State Council and the CMC, and the dual
leadership of local Party committees and governments as well as the military commands. The
concept of people's war, and the principle of combining regular work with military training and
combining peacetime needs with wartime needs are observed in the building of the militia.
The focus of the militia work is being shifted from rural areas to cities and areas along
communication lines. The setting up of militia forces has expanded from state-owned enterprises
to private enterprises and from traditional industries to high-tech industries. Specialized
technical units rather than infantry are becoming the backbone of the militia. The proportion of
antiaircraft artillery, ground artillery, missile, communications, engineering, anti-chemical,
reconnaissance, information and other specialized technical units in the overall militia force is
being raised. The building of militia units of the Navy, Air Force and Second Artillery Force is
being strengthened. A new organizational structure of the militia has taken shape, with
specialized technical units and units with corresponding specialties serving as the main body,
and air defense units, units of the Navy, Air Force and Second Artillery Force, and emergency
response units playing a leading role.
The state has increased investment in militia weaponry and equipment, with priority given to
equipment for air defense, emergency response and maintenance of stability. The state has phased
out a number of out-dated weapons. Militia training reform has been deepened; a four-level system
for organizing training is practiced, the four levels being provincial military commands,
prefectural military commands, people's armed forces departments of counties (county-level cities
or municipal districts) and basic-level people's armed forces departments. Through interlinked
training as well as joint training and exercises with active PLA units, the militia has boosted
its capabilities of conducting rapid mobilization and carrying out its specialized tasks.
Reserve Force Building
As a component of the PLA, the reserve force receives priority in the building of the defense
reserve. The reserve force conducts peacetime training as provided for in relevant regulations,
assists in maintaining order when necessary pursuant to the law, and activates its units in
wartime in observance of the state's mobilization order.
In recent years, while keeping its overall size unchanged, the reserve force has reduced the
number of Army reserve units, while increasing the numbers of reserve units of the Navy, Air
Force and Second Artillery Force, the proportion of specialized technical reserve units and the
number of logistical and equipment support reserve units, thus accomplishing the task of forming
new reserve units of the Navy, Air Force and Second Artillery Force in the Tenth Five-Year Plan
period. Most of the PLA's reserve divisions, brigades and regiments have training bases, armament
depots, necessary office space and living quarters, and optical-fiber cable communication. With
military training as the primary task, the PLA reserve units carry out training strictly pursuant
to regulations, ensuring the accomplishment of all training tasks. The focus of training is being
shifted from individuals and units to command posts, key technicians and higher levels of
training such as joint and live-fire exercises.
VII. Border and Coastal Defense
Adhering to the principles of conducting overall planning, placing equal emphasis on land and
sea, giving priority to defense, and integrating defense and administration, China is endeavoring
to make its border and coastal defense unified, effective, solid and informationized.
Border and Coastal Defense System
China's border and coastal defense is under the unified leadership of the State Council and the
CMC, and practices an administration system of sharing responsibilities between the military and
the local authorities. The State Commission of Border and Coastal Defense, composed of the
relevant departments of the State Council and the PLA, and under the dual leadership of the State
Council and the CMC, guides and coordinates China's border and coastal defense. All military area
commands, as well as border and coastal provinces, prefectures and counties have commissions to
guide and coordinate border and coastal defense within their respective jurisdictions.
The PLA is the main force for defending China's borders and coasts. The PLA border defense force
has a three-level structure, namely, regiment, battalion and company. The PLA coastal defense
force has a five-level structure, namely, division, brigade, regiment, battalion and company. In
2003, the PLA border defense force took over the defense of the China-DPRK border and the Yunnan
section of the China-Myanmar border from the border public security force, thus enabling the
state to integrate land border defense and administration. The border public security force is
tasked with safeguarding security and maintaining social order in border and coastal areas.
Within the border public security force there are contingents in provinces (autonomous regions or
municipalities directly under the central government), detachments, groups, border police
substations and frontier inspection stations in border and coastal areas, border inspection
stations in open ports, and marine police force in coastal waters. Since China launched its
reform and opening-up program, the state has consolidated border and coastal law-enforcement
functions in organizations responsible for public security, customs, inspection and quarantine,
maritime surveillance, fisheries administration, marine affairs and environmental protection. The
state has also established and reinforced the border public security force, as well as border and
coastal law-enforcement contingents for marine affairs, anti-smuggling, fisheries administration
and maritime surveillance.
Building Border and Coastal Defense
China has promulgated the Law on National Defense, the Law on the Territorial Sea and the
Contiguous Zone, the Law on the Exclusive Economic Zone and the Continental Shelf and other
relevant laws and regulations, and updated its border and coastal defense policies and
regulations pursuant to international laws and practices, to manage its border and sea areas in
conformity with the law. China endeavors to strengthen its border and coastal defense,
administration and control, and build a modern border and coastal defense force featuring joint
military-police-civilian efforts in defense and administration. Over the past decade and more,
the state has invested more than RMB 2 billion in construction of border defense infrastructure,
building over 20,000 km of patrol roads, over 6,000 km of barbed-wire fences and installing some
600 sets of monitoring equipment. Construction of coastal defense infrastructure, including duty
piers, monitoring stations and centers and auxiliary facilities has been underway since 2004.
China pursues a good-neighborliness policy, and works to enhance friendship and partnership with
its neighbors. It calls for settling boundary and maritime demarcation issues with countries
concerned in a fair and equitable manner, and through consultations on the basis of equality.
China has signed land border treaties or agreements with Myanmar and 11 other neighboring
countries, thus resolving boundary issues left from history with these countries; it is currently
negotiating with India and Bhutan to settle boundary issues with those two countries
respectively. Since 1996, China has set up bilateral consultation mechanisms on the law of the
sea with the Republic of Korea and Japan, to exchange views on maritime demarcation and
cooperation. In 2004, the Agreement Between China and Vietnam on the Demarcation of the Beibu
Gulf officially entered into force.
China actively promotes border and coastal defense cooperation with its neighbors, strengthens
border and coastal defense contacts in different fields and at various levels, and handles in an
appropriate manner border- and coastal-defense-related issues with countries concerned. In 2005,
the Agreement on Joint Patrols by the Navies of China and Vietnam in the Beibu Gulf was signed,
and China respectively signed with the Philippines and Indonesia the Memorandum of Understanding
on Maritime Affairs Cooperation and the Memorandum of Understanding on Maritime Cooperation. In
July 2006, China and India reopened the border trade route at Nathu La Pass, which links China's
Tibet with Sikkim, India. China's border and coastal defense forces, acting strictly in
accordance with international law and the agreements and understandings signed by China with its
neighbors, have established and improved mechanisms for talks and meetings with their
counterparts in the neighboring countries, and conduct law enforcement and anti-terrorism
cooperation to jointly maintain peace and stability in border areas and related sea areas.
Ensuring the Stability of Border Areas
Stability and development of border areas are the foundation for border and coastal defense. The
Chinese government attaches great importance to work related to ethnic minorities and economic
development in border areas; it has formulated a series of policies and adopted many strategic
measures in this regard. In the early days of New China, close to one million PLA officers and
men were collectively transferred to civilian work in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Tibet
and Inner Mongolia autonomous regions, and Heilongjiang and Yunnan provinces. They were organized
into production and construction corps and state farms, and made great contributions to the
economic development of the border areas and the maintenance of border stability in those areas.
In the 1950s and 1960s, the state moved a large number of industrial enterprises and skilled
workers from inland and coastal areas to border areas, and set up a fairly complete industrial
system and communications and transportation network there. Since the reform and opening-up
policy was initiated in the late 1970s, the state has set up 253 open ports and implemented the
strategy for developing the western region and revitalizing old industrial bases including
Northeast China. It pursues the policy of developing border areas and making border inhabitants
prosperous, and consolidating defense through building close ties with the local people. It has
taken steps, including encouraging inland provinces to provide assistance to their border
counterparts, to accelerate the economic development there. This has laid a solid foundation for
strengthening border and coastal defense.
The PLA border defense force and the border public security force are resolute in maintaining
social stability in border areas and unity among ethnic groups, and take an active part in the
economic development of border areas. They take measures to crack down hard on cross-border
crimes, such as weapon smuggling, drug trafficking, illegal border crossing and human
trafficking, and on separatist, violent and terrorist activities. They strictly implement the
ethnic and religious policies of the state, respect the customs and lifestyle of ethnic
minorities, and strengthen PLA unity with the government and the people, together with unity
among ethnic groups, thus contributing to maintaining political stability and promoting social
development and progress in border areas.
VIII. Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense
China's defense-related science, technology and industry focuses on consolidating its foundation,
making independent innovation, and speeding up the implementation of the strategy of transition
and upgrading, so as to ensure the production and supply of military equipment and promote the
development of national economy.
Improving the industrial structure, enhancing its capabilities of developing and producing new
and high-tech weaponry and equipment. Defense-related science, technology and industry endeavors
to accelerate structural adjustment in research and production, adopt advanced production modes,
promote specialized production and upgrade processing technologies. Priority is given to R&D of
new and high-tech weaponry and equipment, and endeavors to achieve breakthroughs in a number of
key technologies and leapfrogging technological progress, thus speeding up weaponry and equipment
modernization. Defense-related science, technology and industry is enhancing its core
capabilities in R&D and production of the overall systems and key subsystems of major projects,
and introducing more competition into the manufacturing and processing of general and supporting
equipment, gradually establishing an all-round outsourcing system of cooperation for developing
and producing weaponry and equipment. Priority is given to upgrading technologies and products in
the nuclear, space, aviation, shipbuilding, weaponry, electronics and other defense-related
industries, so as to form a cluster of high-tech industries to drive the growth of China's
economy. In 2005, the output value, added value and gross revenue of the entire spectrum of
defense-related science, technology and industry increased by 24.3 percent, 20.7 percent and 21.6
percent, respectively, over the previous year.
The defense manufacturing industries have been further informationized. The Tenth Five-Year Plan
period saw the rapid development of digitalized manufacturing technology and wide application of
computer-aided design, manufacturing and system-integrated manufacturing technologies in China's
defense industries. The capabilities of master design and development, as well as of final
assembly and integration, and the technological level of precision and super-precision processing
were significantly raised. The means and methods of systems integration, experimentation and
simulation, as well as of inspection and testing were upgraded.
The defense industry enterprises have stepped up restructuring and reform, and are exploring
approaches for diversifying their ownership structure and steadily transforming themselves into
share-holding enterprises. The reform of defense-related research institutes is being speeded up
and greater support was given to research institutions engaged in strategic research, basic
research and research in the public interest.
Strengthening capabilities of independent innovation. Efforts are being made to improve the
innovative system of development and production of weaponry and equipment, and the innovative
system of technology for high-tech industries combining military and civilian needs. The former
takes master design, final assembly and manufacturing, and experimentation and verification as
leading factors, and is supported by research and manufacturing of core systems and specialized
equipment, and completed by an outsourcing system. The latter combines production, education and
research, takes enterprises as the main body and research institutions as the mainstay, and is
market-orientated. Priority is given to enhancing basic research, key technology research and
frontier technology research. As a result, a number of state-of-the-art scientific and
technological achievements that enjoy independent intellectual property rights have been made.
Patent applications have increased rapidly -- at an average annual rate of over 40 percent. Major
scientific and technological projects, such as manned space flights and the Lunar Probe Project,
are being carried out to spur the leapfrogging development of high-tech enterprises combining
military and civilian needs and to bring about overall improvements in defense-related science
and technology. Platforms for developing weaponry systems, lab systems for defense-related
science and technology, and research and application centers for advanced industrial technologies
are being built. As a result, a fairly mature scientific and technological infrastructure is
taking shape, which is well-configured, multi-functional, efficient and based on close
cooperation between the military and civilian sectors. In addition, higher education and
vocational education are being boosted for defense-related science, technology and industry.
Three professionally specialized contingents are being constructed, namely, a contingent of
business managers, a contingent of professionals and specialists and a contingent of skilled
workers. Efforts are being made to establish an innovative mechanism to absorb and train
high-caliber people for defense-related science, technology and industry.
On the premise of strictly honoring its international commitments, China encourages and supports
participation in international cooperation and competition in civilian-military industries.
IX. Defense Expenditure
Pursuant to the National Defense Law and the Budget Law, and guided by the principle of
coordinated development of national defense and the economy, the Chinese government decides on
the size and use of defense expenditure in an appropriate way to meet the demands of national
defense in keeping with China's economic development.
China's defense expenditure mainly comprises expenses for personnel, training and maintenance,
and equipment. Personnel expenses mainly cover salaries, insurance, food, clothing, and welfare
benefits for officers, non-commissioned officers and enlisted men as well as for civilian
employees. Training and maintenance expenses cover troop training, institutional education,
construction and maintenance of installations and facilities, and other expenses on routine
consumables. The equipment expenses mainly cover research on, experimentation with, and
procurement, maintenance, transportation and storage of weaponry and equipment. The defense
expenditure covers not only the active forces, but also the militia and reserve forces. Also
covered by the defense expenditure are costs to support part of the retired officers, education
of servicemen's children and the national economic development, as well as other social expenses.
Since the early 1990s, to safeguard its sovereignty, security and unity, and to keep pace with
the global revolution in military affairs, China has gradually increased its defense expenditure
on the basis of its economic development. This increase, however, is compensatory in nature, and
is designed to enhance the originally weak defense foundation. It is a moderate increase in step
with China's national economic development. In the 1980s, China began to shift the focus of its
work to economic development. At that time, it was decided that national defense should be both
subordinated to and serve the country's overall economic development. As a result, national
defense received a low input, and was in a state of self-preservation. From 1979 to 1989, the
average annual increase of defense expenditure was 1.23 percent. However, the defense expenditure
actually registered an average annual decrease of 5.83 percent, given the 7.49 percent average
annual increase of the consumer price index in the same period. From 1990 to 2005, the average
annual increase in defense expenditure was 15.36 percent. As the average annual increase of the
consumer price index during the same period was 5.22 percent, the actual average increase in
defense expenditure was 9.64 percent.
Chart 1: Comparison Between the Growth Rate of China's Defense Expenditure and the National
Residential Consumer Price Index (1989-2005)
China's GDP in 2004 and 2005 was RMB15,987.8 billion and RMB18,308.5 billion, respectively, with
a growth rate of 10.1 percent in 2004 and of 10.2 percent in 2005. The state financial
expenditure was RMB2,848.689 billion in 2004 and RMB3,393.028 billion in 2005, up 15.57 percent
and 19.11 percent respectively over the previous year. China's defense expenditure in 2004 and
2005 was RMB220.001 billion and RMB247.496 billion, respectively, with growth rates of 15.31
percent and 12.50 percent. In the past two years, the share of China's annual defense expenditure
in its GDP and in the state financial expenditure in the same period has decreased, being 1.40
percent and 7.74 percent respectively in 2003, 1.38 percent and 7.72 percent in 2004, and 1.35
percent and 7.29 percent in 2005. Its defense budget for 2006 is RMB283.829 billion
The increased part of China's defense expenditure is primarily used for the following purposes:
(1) Increasing salaries and allowances of military personnel and improving their living
conditions. Along with the growth of China's economy and the steady improvement of the people's
life, the salaries and allowances of military personnel and the pensions of retired officers are
increased accordingly. The insurance, medical, housing and other benefits are also increased.
Subsidies are being increased, too, to compensate for regional and post differences, and the
living conditions of the troops stationed in hardship areas are being improved. (2) Increasing
investment in weaponry and equipment and infrastructure. The PLA is accelerating its
informationization drive, increasing the expenses on procurement and maintenance of weaponry and
equipment, upgrading the military infrastructure, and increasing input for improving the
facilities for border and coastal defense troops. (3) Supporting the training of military
personnel. The PLA is increasing input into education and training through both military
educational institutions and regular institutions of higher learning. It is also increasing
subsidies for professionals with outstanding performance and incentives for experts, and
increasing the budget for the employment of contract civilians. (4) Compensating for price rise.
As the prices of oil, building materials and staple and non-staple foodstuffs rise, the PLA
accordingly increases the expenses on military petroleum, oils and lubricants and defense
engineering, and raises the boarding subsidies. (5) Increasing expenses for international
cooperation in non-traditional security fields.
Both the total amount and per-serviceman share of China's defense expenditure is low compared
with those of some other countries, particularly major powers. In 2005, China's defense
expenditure equaled 6.19 percent of that of the United States, 52.95 percent of that of the
United Kingdom, 71.45 percent of that of France and 67.52 percent of that of Japan. China's
defense expenses per serviceman averaged RMB107,607, amounting to 3.74 percent of that of the
United States and 7.07 percent of that of Japan.
China practices a strict system of financial appropriation of defense funds . The PLA's budgeting
is based on the defense development strategy, military building objectives and annual military
tasks set by the state. Budgeting units at each level carry out studies to decide on their budget
items, make calculations of their requests for funds and then report to the next-higher
authorities. The General Logistics Department, working with the relevant departments of other
general headquarters/departments, analyzes, calculates and verifies the annual budget requests
submitted by all the military area commands, the Navy, Air Force and Second Artillery Force, and
draws up the defense budget. After being reviewed and approved by the CMC, the defense budget is
submitted to the Ministry of Finance. The latter, on the basis of medium- and long-term fiscal
plans and the estimated revenue of the year, puts forward a plan for military expenditure
appropriations after consultation with the General Logistics Department, and then incorporates it
into the annual financial budget draft of the central government. Upon approval by the State
Council, the annual financial budget is submitted to the Budget Work Committee of the NPC
Standing Committee and the Finance and Economic Committee of the NPC for review before it is
submitted to the NPC for review. After the budget of the central government is approved by the
NPC, the Ministry of Finance informs in writing the General Logistics Department of the approved
defense budget. The defense budget is then implemented down to troops at different levels through
prescribed procedures.
Financial departments are instituted at the General Logistics Department, military area commands,
Navy, Air Force and Second Artillery Force, and units at the levels of corps, division (brigade)
and regiment. These departments are responsible for the appropriation, management and supervision
of the defense funds. The auditing offices of the state and the PLA conduct strict supervision of
the defense budget.
X. International Security Cooperation
China pursues a new security concept featuring mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality and
coordination, and adheres to the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence. It works to promote
good-neighborliness, mutual benefit and win-win, and endeavors to advance international security
cooperation and strengthen military relations with other countries.
Regional Security Cooperation
Since its founding five years ago, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has steadily
deepened and expanded cooperation in security, economic and cultural areas in practical terms. A
decision-making mechanism has taken shape, with the Council of Heads of State and the Council of
Heads of Government being its core. Two permanent bodies, namely, the Secretariat and the
Regional Anti-terrorism Structure, have also been established. A number of documents on
cooperation in fighting terrorism, separatism, extremism and drug trafficking have been adopted.
In April 2005, the SCO, ASEAN and the Commonwealth of Independent States signed a memorandum of
understanding on conducting cooperation in counter-terrorism. In July, the Concept of Cooperation
between SCO Members on Combating Terrorism, Separatism and Extremism was adopted at the SCO
Astana Summit. In April 2006, a meeting of SCO defense ministers was held in Beijing, and the
Sixth SCO Summit was held in Shanghai in June. Ten documents, including the Declaration on the
Fifth Anniversary of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, were signed during the Summit.
China attaches great importance to the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF). At the 13th ARF Ministerial
Meeting in July 2006, China called for enhancing mutual trust, respecting diversity and properly
handling the ARF's relations with other mechanisms. In the past two years, China has, within the
ARF framework, hosted the Seminar on Enhancing Cooperation in the Field of Non-traditional
Security Issues, sponsored the ARF Seminar on Non-proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction
with the United States and Singapore, held the Fifth and Sixth ARF Inter-sessional Meetings on
Disaster Relief with Indonesia, and held the Fourth ARF Inter-sessional Meeting on
Counter-terrorism and Transnational Crime with Brunei.
China's cooperation in the non-traditional security area with ASEAN and within the framework of
ASEAN and China, Japan and the Republic of Korea has achieved significant progress. In January
2005, China proposed a series of initiatives on disaster prevention and reduction at the Special
ASEAN Leaders' Meeting on the Aftermath of Earthquake and Tsunamis. In August, China hosted the
Workshop on Policing Exchanges and Cooperation among the Capital Police Agencies of ASEAN, China,
Japan and the Republic of Korea, during which the Beijing Declaration on Policing Exchanges and
Cooperation among the Capital Police Agencies of ASEAN, China, Japan and the Republic of Korea
was signed. In October, China hosted the Second International Congress of ASEAN and China on
Cooperative Operations in Response to Dangerous Drugs. The Beijing Declaration and other
documents were adopted. In November, China attended the Second ASEAN and China, Japan and the
Republic of Korea Ministerial Meeting on Transnational Crime and the First China-ASEAN Informal
Ministerial Meeting on Transnational Crime.
Honoring Commitment to International Arms Control and Non-Proliferation
China has made sound preparations for implementing the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). To
this end, a preparatory office has been established at the PLA General Armaments Department. With
the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Health, the State Environmental
Protection Administration, the China Earthquake Administration and other government departments,
this office is responsible for setting up 11 monitoring stations in China as part of the
international monitoring system, and formulating their administrative regulations and detailed
rules for the implementation of the CTBT. Two primary seismological monitoring stations have been
set up in Hailar and Lanzhou, respectively, and three radionuclide stations have been set up in
Beijing, Guangzhou and Lanzhou, respectively. The surveying of the two sites for two infrasound
stations in Beijing and Kunming has been completed, and construction is scheduled to start soon.
The China National Data Center and the Beijing Radionuclide Laboratory have been built, and are
now in trial operation.
China supports multilateral efforts aimed at enhancing the effectiveness of the Biological
Weapons Convention. It has attended the review conferences, annual meetings of State Parties and
meetings of the Ad Hoc Group of Governmental Experts in an active and responsible manner. China
has also submitted in a timely fashion to the United Nations declarations regarding
confidence-building measures under the Convention.
China honors in good faith its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention. It has promptly
and completely submitted all the annual declarations, subsequent declarations regarding newly
discovered chemical weapons abandoned by Japan in China and the annual national programs related
to protective purposes. It has also received more than 100 on-site inspections by the
Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. The PLA is working, in strict compliance
with the Convention, to ensure the smooth management and operation of the "single small-scale
facility" and the "10kg Schedule I Chemical Synthesis Laboratory." China and Japan have held 42
rounds of bilateral consultations to accelerate the destruction of the chemical weapons abandoned
by Japan in China. Since 2005, China has assisted Japan in 24 on-site verifications, and
recovered over 3,100 chemical weapons abandoned by Japan. At the request of Japan, China has
taken into temporary custody the recovered Japanese-abandoned chemical weapons confirmed by
Japan. These chemical weapons will be destroyed by Japan in the future.
China fully honors its obligations under the amended Landmine Protocol to the Convention on
Certain Conventional Weapons. The PLA keeps its troops fully informed of China's obligations, and
has implemented the technical standards and limitations specified in the Protocol. It has carried
out a general check of all the anti-personnel landmines that do not meet the standards of the
Protocol, and has destroyed several hundred thousand old landmines in a planned way. China has
made technical modifications to usable anti-infantry landmines in inventory to make them conform
to the technical standards of the Protocol. China continues to take an active part in
international demining operations. In the period September-December 2005, Chinese military
demining experts worked in Thailand to train demining personnel and give on-site instructions.
China also provided Thailand with demining equipment. In the period September-December 2006,
China ran demining training courses for Lebanon and Jordan in Nanjing, and provided the two
countries with demining equipment. China has taken part in a constructive way in the discussions
on anti-vehicle landmines by the Group of Governmental Experts of the Convention on Certain
Conventional Weapons, and is making preparations for ratifying the Protocol on Explosive Remnants
of War.
China is firmly opposed to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of
delivery. It supports the United Nations in playing its due role in non-proliferation. China is a
party to all international treaties on non-proliferation and related international organizations.
It has established a complete legal regime for controlling the export of nuclear, biological and
chemical weapons, missiles and other related sensitive items and technologies, and all defense
items. China follows strict procedures in approving exports, to ensure effective export control.
Military Exchanges and Cooperation
China has established military ties with over 150 countries and military attaché offices in 107
countries. A total of 85 countries have military attaché offices in China. In the past two
years, senior PLA delegations have visited more than 60 countries, and defense ministers,
commanders-in-chief of the services, chiefs of the general staff and other high-ranking officers
and military-related officials from more than 90 countries have visited China. China and Russia
hold regular high-level military exchanges, and the general staff headquarters of the two
countries have held the ninth and tenth rounds of strategic consultations. The military
activities connected with "Russia Year" were successful. In October 2005 and July 2006, Chinese
and US military leaders exchanged visits. China and the US maintain in-depth exchanges through
institutionalized defense consultations and maritime military security consultations. China has
enhanced high-level military contacts and defense consultations with the European countries, and
China-Europe military exchanges have progressed steadily. China maintains military contacts with
its neighbors, and has enhanced military exchanges with other developing countries. Since 2005,
China has held workshops for senior officers from Latin American and Middle Eastern countries,
and China-Germany, China-France workshops for senior officers. It has also hosted the SCO defense
and security forum and the China-ASEAN workshop on Asia-Pacific security issues. Since 2002,
China has held 16 joint military exercises with 11 countries. In August 2005, China and Russia
conducted the "Peace Mission-2005" joint military exercise in Russia's Vladivostok and China's
Shandong Peninsula, and their respective offshore waters. In November and December 2005, the PLA
Navy held joint maritime search and rescue exercises with its Pakistani, Indian and Thai
counterparts, respectively. In September 2006, China and Tajikistan conducted the
"Cooperation-2006" joint counter-terrorism military exercise. In September and November 2006, the
Chinese Navy and the US Navy conducted joint maritime search and rescue exercises in the offshore
waters of San Diego and in the South China Sea. In December 2006, China and Pakistan held the
"Friendship-2006" joint counter-terrorism military exercise. In the past two years, the PLA has
sent observers to military exercises held by Turkey, Thailand, Pakistan, India, the US and
Australia. In September 2005, the PLA invited 41 military observers and military attachés from
24 countries to attend the "North Sword-2005" maneuvers organized by the Beijing Military Area
Command. Naval ships from Thailand, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United
Kingdom, the Republic of Korea, France, Singapore and Peru have paid port visits to China. PLA
naval ships have visited Pakistan, India, Thailand, the United States, Canada and the
Philippines. In the past two years, the PLA has continued to expand exchanges of professional
expertise and military students with its foreign counterparts. It has sent division- and
brigade-level officers of combat troops and relevant functional organs of the Navy, Air Force,
Second Artillery Force, military area commands, and general headquarters/departments on overseas
study tours. Over 500 military personnel have been dispatched to study in more than 20 countries,
and over 2,000 military personnel from more than 140 countries have come to China to study in
military schools.
Participation in UN Peacekeeping Operations and International Disaster Relief Operations
Since 1990, China has sent 5,915 military personnel to participate in 16 UN peacekeeping
operations. Eight lost their lives and several dozens were wounded on duty. Since 2000, China has
sent 893 peacekeeping police officers to seven mission areas. At present, China has 1,487
military peacekeeping personnel serving in nine UN mission areas and the UN Department of
Peacekeeping Operations. Among them, 92 military observers and staff officers, 175 engineering
troops and 43 medical personnel are in Congo (Kinshasa); 275 engineering troops, 240
transportation troops and 43 medical personnel are in Liberia; 275 engineering troops, 100
transportation troops and 60 medical personnel are in Sudan; and 182 engineering troops are in
Lebanon. China also has a total of 180 peacekeeping police officers in Liberia, Kosovo, Haiti and
Sudan.
The PLA has actively participated in the international disaster relief operations conducted by
the Chinese government. It has set up an emergency command mechanism, sent personnel to join
specialized rescue teams, provided equipment, and assisted in mission-oriented training. In the
past two years, PLA personnel have joined China's international rescue teams in international
rescue operations after the Indian Ocean tsunami and the earthquakes in Pakistan and Indonesia.
They have conducted search and rescue operations for people in distress, treatment of the sick
and injured and prevention of epidemics, and assisted the Chinese government in providing relief
materials to disaster-stricken countries.
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