The newly established theater commands of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army undertake the mission of safeguarding national sovereignty, security and development interests, safeguard regional stability and world peace, said Yang Yujun, spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of National Defense at a press conference on Monday in Beijing.
He told reporters that the five theater commands are: the Eastern Theater Command, the Southern Theater Command, the Western Theater Command, the Northern Theater Command and the Central Theater Command. They have replaced the seven military area commands with their headquarters in Beijing, Shenyang, Lanzhou, Ji’nan, Nanjing, Guangzhou and Chengdu.
“The purpose of the move,” he said, “is to build a joint battle command system” that is “absolutely loyal, resourceful in fighting, efficient in commanding and courageous and capable of winning wars”.
Explaining the move, Yang said that the change has been made as part of the efforts to implement the objective of building a stronger army and the military strategic principles in the new situation.
Under the new structure, the CMC takes charge of the overall military administration and the theater commands focus on combat and the building of different arms and services.
China has made the change according to the security situation of the country and the mission and tasks of the army. The change is favorable for building and improving a joint battle command system, better safeguarding state sovereignty, security and development interests, and maintaining peace and stability in the region and the world as a whole,” said Yang.
The theater commands will perform their duties according to the requirements of integrating the operations in both peacetime and wartime and routine operations, making them specialized, highly competent and efficient.
Yang said the five theater commands are responsible for dealing with security threats in their respective strategic scopes, maintaining peace, containing wars and winning wars.
Xi said the formation of the five theater commands is a strategic decision made by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the CMC to realize the dream of a strong army and a landmark move in implementing military reforms. (CCTV/Reuters)