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News | May 17, 2021

PLA Overseas Operations in 2035: Inching Toward a Global Combat Capability

By Joel Wuthnow, Phillip C. Saunders, and Ian Burns McCaslin Strategic Forum 309

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PLA Overseas Operations in 2035: Inching Toward a Global Combat Capability
PLA Overseas Operations in 2035: Inching Toward a Global Combat Capability
PLA Overseas Operations in 2035: Inching Toward a Global Combat Capability
Photo By: NDU Press
VIRIN: 210517-D-BD104-001

Key Points

  • The Chinese military presence in the “far seas” beyond Asia is growing and will expand further as the PLA moves toward its 2035 goal of fielding a fully modern military.
  • Existing overseas activities are mostly conducted by a single service and have not involved combat.
  • Future scenarios for overseas joint operations include larger-scale military operations other than war, extended-range counterintervention, and overseas combat.
  • Conducting more complex overseas operations would require substantial improvements in PLA capabilities, including a better developed global command structure, increases in sealift and airlift assets, a stronger overseas joint logistics system, and more effective joint commanders.
  • Changes in the domestic or regional security environment or intensified U.S.-China competition could accelerate a transition toward greater emphasis on expeditionary operations, including higher-end combat scenarios.

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