The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) criticized its own military personnel for being paralyzed by peace as China ramped up preparations for war.
This week, a PLA Daily report blasted its own soldiers for refusing to face the possibility of war, blaming the recent period of peace for paralyzing the current generation of troops, reported the Global Times, a newspaper produced by the ruling Communist party.
"War is not far from us. Regional situations around China are complex and unstable, and dangers are hiding under the peace. China cannot afford a military failure, so we must be fully aware of potential crisis and be prepared for battle at all times," the official PLA newspaper read.
On Thursday, President Xi Jinping called for the military to demonstrate heroism and a fighting spirit to safeguard the Communist party’s interests at the second plenary session of the 19th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the CPC, reported Xinhua News Agency.
That same day, the official military news site warned its soldiers to prepare for imminent threats and to avoid complacency as it began intense training to ready the country for battle.
This follows the enormous military assembly on January 3 at which President Xi Jinping told his troops not to fear “hardship or death” and issued instructions to its forces to begin real combat training for all three branches of the military: the army, the navy and the air force.
Since Xi’s speech, China’s most advanced military aircraft have been conducting extreme exercises, according to the Global Times. The exercises, at home and abroad, have included air combat training with a J-20 stealth fighter jet, a Y-20 transport aircraft and an H-6K bomber.
Xu Guangyu, a retired general, said the likelihood that China would be forced to engage in military conflict has increased over the past few years.
"In regions like the Korea Peninsula, China-India border area and the Taiwan Straits, the PLA needs to be prepared for all possibilities. Our overseas interests in regions like Africa and the Middle East are also under threat due to local instability,” he said.
