Special Report:China Marks 60th Anniversary of
Navy
Backgrounder: Brief history of China's
People's Liberation Army
Navy
BEIJING, April 23
-- The 60 years' history of the navy of the People's Republic of China (PRC) has
witnessed both great triumph in battlefields and substantial progress in its
weaponry and equipments.
Right from purchasing, repairing and imitating, the
navy has now noticeably improved its capability of independently designing and
manufacturing combat platforms, weaponry and equipment. As a result, the
operational capability of the navy has seen a rapid rise.
The Chinese navy's Great Wall 218
submarine docks at Qingdao port yesterday. It will join warships from
China and other countries today to mark the 60th anniversary of the navy.
(Photo Source: China Daily/Reuters)
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In
the early 1980s, the navy had considerably upgraded its weaponry and equipments,
and acquired offshore operational capability. It was mature to adopt an offshore
defense strategy, due to the rising strategic status of the offshore
battlefields.
In such a background, based on Deng Xiaoping's
thought on the offshore defense strategy, the navy formulated and established
its plan focusing on offshore defense. This strategy endowed the navy new
missions. Its duty to cooperate with the army to defend the landmass was
curtailed, while undertaking the tasks of ensuring the unification of the
nation, defending the integrity of the territory, as well as safeguarding the
maritime rights and interests of China.
The offshore defense strategy makes clear to the
international community that the missions of the Chinese navy are to defend the
country's maritime rights, interests and security, safeguard its economic
development, and serve its peaceful diplomacy.
China will not build an offensive navy cruising the
globe, but concentrate on its offshore area. Even if in future the navy is
modernized, the defensive nature of the naval strategy will not change.
In order to defend China's territory and sovereignty, and secure its maritime rights and interests, the navy decided to set its defense range as the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea, and the South China Sea. This range covered the maritime territory that should be governed by China, according to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, as well as the islands in the South China Sea, which have been its territory since ancient times.
Senior navy officers visit a Chinese naval submarine at Qingdao port, east China's Shandong Province, on April 22, 2009. Heads of delegations of foreign navies, who came to Qingdao to attend the celebration marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of Chinese Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy, visited Chinese naval submarine here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Gang)
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As part of the offshore defense strategy, the navy carried out defensive counterattack operations in Nansha Islands, and resumed and garrisoned seven islands and reefs. In the same period, the navy perfectly accomplished the missions of maritime scientific expeditions, naval military exercises, naval weaponry experiments, and assistance to the nation's economic development.
Along with upgraded naval equipments and strengthened
operational capability, as well as the extension of China's maritime interests,
the navy has accelerated its pace of modernization in a bid to more effectively
fulfill its missions.
It seeks to promote the capability of capturing and
maintaining the command of the sea and air in the main directions of operation
in the offshore area. The capability to effectively control, when necessary, the
major sea routes linking China's waters, and to operate in the seas adjacent to
China's maritime territory, should also be strengthened.
In the 21st century, the modernization process of
China has entered into a new phase. China's maritime security has also seen new
circumstances and uncertain disputes, and faced multifaceted threats and
challenges.
Furthermore, the arms development in the world is
dashing at a revolutionary pace, shaping the future's information-oriented wars,
which will greatly affect navies around the globe.
In the future, the struggle for the command of the
sea will emerge in multi-dimensional battlefields, including the land, the sea,
the air, the outer space, the cyber space, and so forth.
Based on the current force of the navy, China should
maintain its offshore defense naval strategy, and guarantee the command of its
seas.
With better naval weaponry and stronger operational
capability, the navy could gradually extend its operational range beyond the
offshore area. The offshore area, however, will still be its focus.
The navy has encouraged creative reforms in the
contents and methods of military exercises, highlighted joint operation
exercises, and strengthened its comprehensive operational capability of fighting
battles in the offshore area, as well as its nuclear counter-attack capability.
The navy scientifically organizes its battle, tactic,
specialized technical, and general exercises. The integrated exercises joining
all war-fighting elements in the information age are emphasized, while exploring
the training methods in complex electromagnetic environment.
The navy stresses on exercises for peaceful military
operations, and has proactively joined bilateral and multilateral joint
exercises.
New types of submarines, destroyers, corvettes, and
airplanes are now produced. The navy has formed a weaponry system with
second-generation equipments as the main body and third-generation equipments as
the core.
(Source: China Daily)
Chinese navy sees role further
afield
BEIJING, April 22 (Xinhua)
-- The Chinese navy is undergoing a transformation to protect the country and
its maritime rights, experts said ahead of the 60th founding anniversary of the
navy on Thursday.
The navy has been following the offshore defense
strategy in the 1980s. A long coastline and developing sea-borne trade mean
China needs to have a strong blue-water presence, said Zhuang Congyong, a
researcher with the Naval Command Academy (NCA) of the Chinese People's
Liberation Army (PLA).Full story
Chinese navy sails onto world
stage
BEIJING, April 21 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese People's
Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) was *** final preparations for Thursday's
international fleet parade in the eastern port of Qingdao to celebrate the 60th
anniversary of its founding.
The parade will feature 21 navy ships from other
countries. Full story
China celebrates 60th anniversary of
navy
QINGDAO, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Chinese People's Liberation
Army (PLA) kicked off a grand maritime ceremony to mark the 60th anniversary of
the founding of its navy at 6 p.m. Monday off the coast of the eastern city of
Qingdao.
PLA Navy Commander Admiral Wu Shengli announced the
start of the four-day festivities, set to conclude on April 23, which would
include seminars, a sampan race and a fleet review. Full story
Navy admiral: China to develop
sophisticated marine weapon
systems
BEIJING, April 15 (Xinhua)
-- Large su***ce combat ships, supersonic cruise aircraft, high-speed
intelligent torpedoes ... These are a few sophisticated marine weapons China
plans to build.
"The Navy will move faster in researching and building
new-generation weapons to boost the ability to fight in regional sea wars under
the circumstance of information technology," Navy Commander Admiral Wu Shengli
told Xinhua in an exclusive interview-- one week ahead of the 60th anniversary
of the founding of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy.Full story
Chinese navy expands foreign
cooperation
BEIJING, April 15
(Xinhua) -- China's navy is stepping up foreign exchanges and cooperation to
cope with non-traditional security threats in oceans, Navy Commander Adm. Wu
Shengli said here Wednesday.
Since the new century, the Chinese navy has conducted 37
joint military drills with its foreign counterparts in areas including
non-proliferation of weapons of destruction, security defense of sea-land-air
channels, anti-terrorism and joint search and rescue, Wu said in an exclusive
interview with Xinhua. Full story
U.S. navy missile destroyer USS
Fitzgerald arrives in Qingdao, a port city in east China's Shandong
Province, April 19, 2009, to attend an international fleet review on April
23 to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's
Liberation Army Navy. (Xinhua Photo)
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Mexican naval soldiers stand on the
masts of their military ship upon its arrival at the Qingdao port in east
China's Shandong province, April 18, 2009. (Xinhua Photo)
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Chinese military band plays to welcome
the arrival of a Mexican military ship at the Qingdao port in east China's
Shandong province, April 18, 2009.(Xinhua Photo)
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Mexican naval soldiers wave their hands
on their military ship upon its arrival at the Qingdao port in east
China's Shandong province, April 18, 2009.(Xinhua Photo)
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