CHINA

 

 

INSS China research focuses on Chinese national objectives and strategy, military modernization, regional strategy and territorial disputes, and the foundations of national power and innovation. Key focus area include military reforms aimed at increasing jointness, nuclear modernization, space and cyber capabilities, relations with the United States and neighboring countries, and efforts to use diplomatic, economic, and military instruments to expand Chinese influence regionally and globally. This research informs U.S. strategy toward China across all dimensions of competition, including development of strategic and operational concepts that exploit Chinese weaknesses and enhance U.S. readiness, alliances, interoperability, and combat capability.

In this handout photo released by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service, Chief of the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation Col. Gen. Vladimir Zarudnitsky, left, escorts China's Defense Minister Gen. Li Shangfu during a visit to Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in Moscow, Russia, Monday, April 17, 2023. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)
Why Is Xi Still Purging His Generals?
By Joel Wuthnow | March 2, 2026
The removal of PLA senior generals Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli in January 2026 represented the peak, if not the end, of a massive purge of the military leadership that began in mid-2023.

President Xi Jinping inspects rows of Chinese soldiers standing at attention during an indoor military ceremony.
Assessing Xi’s Unprecedented Purges of China’s Military: Key Developments and Potential Implications
By Bonny Lin, Brian Hart, Thomas J. Christensen, John Culver, Jonathan A. Czin, Suyash Desai, M. Taylor Fravel, Allie Matthias, and Joel Wuthnow | Feb. 25, 2026
On January 24, 2026, China’s Ministry of National Defense announced that the military’s top general, Zhang Youxia, and the chief of the Joint Staff Department, Liu Zhenli, had been placed under investigation for serious disciplinary and legal violations.

President of the United States Donald Trump participates in a bilateral meeting with General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party Xi Jinping at the Gimhae International Airport terminal, Thursday, October 30, 2025, in Busan, South Korea. (Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok)
The Danger in the Middle: Will Xi’s Purges Increase the Risk of War?
By Joel Wuthnow | Feb. 25, 2026
Chinese leader Xi Jinping has purged dozens of senior People’s Liberation Army officers since mid-2023, including two in January, but will this increase the risk of war?

Zhang Youxia (front) in 2023 swearing an oath as Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing
Xi’s military purges will make him wary of invading Taiwan
By Dr. Phillip Saunders | Feb. 5, 2026
On 25 January, China’s People’s Liberation Army announced that Central Military Commission Vice-Chair Zhang Youxia and Chief of the Joint Staff Department General Liu Zhenli were under investigation for “suspected serious violations of discipline and law.”

Cover of The 2024 Carlisle Conference of the PLA
INSS Contributes Chapter on "PLA High Command in a Protracted War" in Army War College Book
By Joel Wuthnow | Jan. 20, 2026
INSS China Center Senior Research Fellow Dr. Joel Wuthnow published a chapter on “PLA High Command in a Protracted War: Four Scenarios” in a new Army War College book edited by Joshua Arostegui, The 2024 Carlisle Conference on the PLA: Protracted War Against the PRC.

Cover of DTRA Study: Implications of a PRC Shift to a Launch-on-Warning Nuclear Posture
Implications of a PRC Shift to a Launch-on-Warning Nuclear Posture
By Dr. David C. Logan and Dr. Phillip C. Saunders | Nov. 21, 2025
This Defense Threat Reduction Agency study assesses the prospects and implications of China’s adoption of a launch-on-warning (LOW) posture for U.S. national security objectives. It evaluates China’s ability to adopt a LOW posture, identifies the key design decisions, examines what a Chinese LOW posture might look like, and assesses the implications and identifies potential mitigation measures.

Cover of China Strategic Perspectives 20
Taming the Hegemon: Chinese Thinking on Countering U.S. Military Intervention in Asia
By Joel Wuthnow | Sept. 15, 2025
This report assesses recent Chinese thinking on countering U.S. intervention in Asia, specifically in a Taiwan contingency.

Soldiers loading sea mines during a military exercise in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, July 2025
The Greatest Danger in the Taiwan Strait
By Dr. Joel Wuthnow | Sept. 15, 2025
Dr. Joel Wuthnow writes a piece for Foreign Affairs on how a war between China and Taiwan could result from an accident or miscalculation that spirals out of control.

Two figures. Figure 1 (left): All Military Leader Engagements with Africa.  Figure 2 (right): CMC Vice Chair travel to Africa.
China’s Military Diplomacy in Africa
By Matt Kuhlman, Raina Nelson, and Phillip C. Saunders | Aug. 20, 2025
This article shows another application for regional researchers, analysts, and policymakers. Specifically, it uses the database to explore some specific aspects of the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA’s) evolving engagement in Africa.

Cover art of School of War
INSS China Center Researchers join School of War Podcast
By Aaron MacLean | Aug. 13, 2025
INSS China Center Director Dr. Phillip Saunders and Senior Research Fellow Dr. Joel Wuthnow are interviewed discussing their new book China’s Quest for Military Supremacy on the latest School of War podcast.