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Preparing the People’s Liberation Army Militia for War

  • Published
  • China Aerospace Studies Institute

Since the inception of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) the militia has played an important role.  In an interview with the Director of the Political Work Bureau of the Hunan Military District Liu Xinwen sums up this sentiment stating, “The militia is the backbone of the people's war [人民战争] . To respect the militia is to carry forward the fine tradition of the people's war. All of society reveres the occupation of the militia.”   In a recent five-part series in Chinese National Defense News the role of the militia is examined with the question, “What can the militia do in modern warfare?”   It is a question, the authors write, that “lingers” [萦绕] in many people’s minds.  As the authors assess, “the militia has changed from focusing on emergency response to strengthening its ability to fight in a war”.   In the series the authors focus on five main areas in which the militia is preparing for future wars including: integration into the military, combat training, better organization, political work, and expanding the cyber militia. The goal is to build the militia into a well-organized and powerful force that can mobilize quickly for future wars.  

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