Beijing: China is facing increased “instability” and “uncertainty”, Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Tuesday warned the top brass of the country’s military during his first visit to the armed forces’ joint operations command in Beijing in his third term, and instructed them to be combat ready and enhance capabilities to “fight and win” wars.
“The entire military should devote all of its energy to and carry out all of its work for combat readiness, enhance its capability to fight and win, and effectively fulfil its missions and tasks in the new era,” Xi said during an inspection of the Central Military Commission’s (CMC) joint operations command centre in Beijing.
It was his first visit to the joint operations command since taking over as the general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) for a norm breaking third term last month.
Xi was also appointed chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) for another term at last month’s Communist party national congress.
Noting that the world is undergoing more profound changes unseen in a century, Xi said, as per a statement from the official Xinhua news agency, “…China’s national security is facing increased instability and uncertainty, and its military tasks remain arduous”.
Xi did not clarify what national security risks China was facing or the reasons behind the country’s instability.
Xi instructed the military to “…resolutely safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests”, the Xinhua report said, adding that he “demanded” that the armed forces “…adhere to combat effectiveness as the sole criterion”.
Xi, as per the Xinhua report, also instructed the forces to “…resolutely safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests…”
The Chinese leader’s visit to the CMC joint operations command centre comes in the backdrop of ongoing military tension with Taiwan and Beijing’s repeated assertion that it will never give up the right to use military forces to merge the self-ruled island with the mainland.
China is also embroiled in a localised but dragging border problem with India since April, 2020 and both countries continue heavy deployment of troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
The significance of Xi’s visit is that the new CMC, which is China’s highest military decision-making body and has oversight over China’s massive armed forces , was announced at the end of the 20th Communist party Congress in October.
Headed by Xi himself, the CMC now comprises Zhang Youxia and He Weidong, both vice-chairmen, and four more top officials Li Shangfu, Liu Zhenli, Miao Hua, and Zhang Shengmin.
Xi also promoted three senior People’s Liberation Army (PLA) officers, including the current head of the Western Theatre Command (WTC) – overseeing the disputed border with India during the national congress.
The three who were promoted were He Weidong, Wang Haijiang and Xu Qiling.
