China Unveils New Information Support Force as Part of Major Military Revamp

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14:00 GMT 20.04.2024 (Updated: 14:01 GMT 20.04.2024)

Svetlana Ekimenko

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Faced with increasing sabre-rattling by the US under the pretext of the China threat narrative, Beijing has been pushing ahead with a series of sweeping military modernization efforts, revamping the People’s Liberation Army’s capabilities in all domains.

China has unveiled a brand new branch of its military – the Information Support Force – as part of a major reorganization of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), Xinhua News Agency reported.

The revamp will see the Strategic Support Force replaced by the new branch, with the aerospace and cyber units previously under its command «organizationally parallel» to the Information Support Force, as per a Chinese Defense Ministry statement.

Chinese President Xi Jinping conferred the new force’s flag to its commanders at a ceremony on Friday in Beijing, underscoring the growing need for using information assets to support successful combat operations. In light of modern warfare challenges, a strong military could not do without a modernized information support force, stressed Xi.

“This is of profound and far-reaching significance to the modernization of national defense and the armed forces and to the military’s fulfillment of its missions and tasks in the new era. The Information Support Force is a brand-new strategic branch of the PLA and a key pillar of the integrated development and use of the network information system. It plays an important role and bears great responsibility in promoting the PLA’s high-quality development and the ability to fight and win in modern warfare,» said the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CPC) Central Committee, as cited by local media.

The new force is tasked with “maintaining information flow, integrating information resources, and protecting information security.”

China also carried out a reshuffle in the top brass last year, with Li Shangfu removed from the post of Chinese defense minister. The Chinese parliament appointed Dong Jun, commander of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), as the new defense minister in December 2023.

The changes come against the backdrop of an increased regional US-led militarization program targeting the Pacific. Washington has been strengthening its Asia-Pacific deployments, relying on a posse of allies, such as Japan, Australia, and the Philippines, in a reflection of what the Chinese Defense Ministry has berated as a «typical Cold War mindset.»

In a historic first, all four held joint naval exercises in the South China Sea amid heightened tensions stemming from territorial disputes in the area. As the four cited Beijing’s growing assertiveness in the region, China’s military responded with its own increased naval and air patrols in the South China Sea. Beijing has repeatedly warned that joint US military exercises undermine its security interests.

Furthermore, the United States intends to deploy medium-range missiles in the Indo-Pacific region by the end of this year, Indo-Pacific Land Forces Cmdr. Gen. Charles Flynn said in April.

China will resolutely oppose this dangerous trend, Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian said, noting:

«The US intention to deploy medium-range missiles in the Asia-Pacific region is a dangerous trend that will seriously threaten the security of the countries in the region and cause serious damage to regional peace and stability. China resolutely opposes this and will resolutely oppose it,» Wu told reporters.