On Point: What Tasks Does Xi Have for China's Military?

[Valin]

Strategy Page

Austin Bay

May 27 2020

On May 26, Chinese President Xi Jinping told senior officers the Peoples Liberation Army and Peoples Armed Police Force increase "preparedness for armed combat" as well as other military tasks.

It is a chilling thought, but Xi may have several "tasks" in mind, for both the PLA and the PAP. Throttling Hong Kong immediately comes to mind. Beijing's communist government is on the verge of breaking the 1984 Sino-British treaty that guaranteed Hong Kong's autonomy through 2047.

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But Vietnam is much more than a sea squabble. In 1979, China and Vietnam fought a brief but bloody border war. Chinese forces performed poorly. Vietnam inflicted very heavy casualties on the invading PLA. China remembers, with embarrassment. The PLA is now a modernized force.

Since 1949, Taiwan has been on the task list, but recent elections indicating Taiwan prefers complete independence have sparked threats by the communists to attack the island and "recover the lost province." For that, China's generals need air superiority over the Taiwan Strait. They are building air and missile forces with that in mind. They are also procuring amphibious warfare ships to move assault troops across the Taiwan Strait. However, Tiananmen Square and China's failure to respect its promises to protect Hong Kong's freedoms have stiffened Taiwan's spine.

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In fall 2019, elements of two PAP divisions deployed their armored cars and armored personnel carriers along Hong Kong's border. It is a chilling thought, but Xi might task the PAP and PLA with arresting, beating and perhaps killing pro-democracy Hong Kong citizens who refuse to kowtow to Beijing's communist dictators.