Military of China, force comment.
Military of China, force comment.

Data for: People’s Liberation Army relief delivery of relief supplies.

newspaper special military observers Zhao Chuanheng

this year’s “August” Army Day approaching, the Chinese and foreign media correspondents were invited to visit the Beijing Military Region Corps of Engineers, professional site to watch the demo and earthquake engineering comprehensive training, the Defense Department spokesman also told reporters, introduced in recent years, the PLA to participate in domestic disaster relief and humanitarian aid related to the international situation. China’s military, including the implementation of disaster relief and humanitarian aid, including the ability of non-war military operations, will become a topic of concern to foreign media.

army is key to disaster response force

AFP Journal send an announcement on July 31, said recently, in southern China, and other provinces in Northeast floods disasters, the PLA and armed police forces busy in the flood line of the lens appeared frequently on television. As in previous years, where the major disaster areas, can see the Chinese military presence. Chinese army is the key to the government the power to respond to natural disasters.

The U.S. military experts Chi 库詹姆斯敦 Foundation, Michael Chase and 克里斯滕冈 Nice that the Chinese military as early as 2006, “National Defense White Paper” made it clear that the complete the “diverse military tasks,” the argument. The so-called diversified military tasks, is to emphasize the core of the PLA military operations with the ability to carry out the same time, should also have carry out non-war military operations. Military operations other than war is a very broad concept, including both disaster relief, humanitarian assistance, including peacekeeping and counter-terrorism actions.

Associated Press, the Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman quoted by the new data provided by Geng Yansheng, said the Chinese armed forces in disaster relief and humanitarian assistance has made substantial progress. Geng Yansheng said China’s military has set up emergency forces, including flood, earthquake disaster emergency rescue teams, including eight state-level emergency response expertise, scale of about 50,000 troops. Since 2002, the Chinese army 23 times the implementation of international humanitarian aid missions, a total of 19 affected countries to a total value of more than 500 million yuan of goods.

PLA has not been involved in overseas aid

BBC’s coverage of the special mention from the practice in recent years, both the Wenchuan earthquake, Qinghai Yushu, southern snow disasters, the Chinese armed forces are the backbone of response to natural disasters. However, such action is mainly conducted in China, the Chinese army had almost no overseas deployment to a disaster relief operation, which the United States in 2004 and the 2010 tsunami in Southeast Asia to send an aircraft carrier to participate in Haiti after the earthquake relief, in sharp contrast.

In fact, in June 2008, Jamestown Foundation, another expert Drew Thompson, on the Foundation, “China Brief,” the author speculated that the reason is the Chinese army less to perform disaster relief missions abroad, perhaps due to three considerations: First, the core military capabilities fear spread the resources needed for the building; two domestic disasters, it needs to give priority to satisfy; third, concerned overseas sent troops and relief, easily lead to the outside of the “China military threat theory” hype.

but Thompson believes that by studying the active participation of the U.S. military in disaster relief overseas cases, the Chinese government has gradually realized that this action will not only help to enhance its international image, and is also rare for the military field training opportunities. Therefore, do not rule out the Chinese army in the future will be more to go abroad for participation in disaster relief for large-scale overseas deployments.

“hospital ship” to expand national influence

Thompson also noted that the new Chinese navy hospital ship to overseas relief value. According to the U.S., “Defense News,” saying, ship hospital ship in November 2008 in Guangzhou, completed service, the displacement of over million tons, and with hundreds of beds and advanced medical care systems, treatment conditions to achieve the level of the top three hospitals. War, the ship can provide early treatment for the sick and wounded, and some specialist treatment, or medical service support for the ships and other forces; usual, you can perform a training mission at sea medical care, but also for ships and in remote areas such as reefs forces to provide medical services.

“Defense News” this analysis is that over the past decade, China has significantly increased the level of participation in international affairs, continue to send troops to participate in UN peacekeeping operations, while resource-rich countries to provide more investment and help, especially in Africa. The service aboard the hospital ship, the Chinese Navy outreach countries will influence more convenient.

Previously, only two Chinese navy hospital ships tonnage of less. United States, “World Politics Review” magazine website that although the new hospital ships will participate in more traditional military tasks, but when there are large-scale outbreak of a disaster at sea, China will also send first-class performance aboard the hospital ship to participate in humanitarian relief, opportunity to display their military power and the level of willingness to participate in international affairs.

equipment and training levels remaining short board

whenever disaster strikes, always quick to mobilize the Chinese army, quickly dispatched to disaster relief efforts. Especially in the Wenchuan earthquake, the PLA began within 14 minutes to hit their plans, has won praise from international media. Of course, there are some media pointed out that China’s military past performance, its rescue capabilities have further room for improvement.

2009, published in January of the U.S. military, “Joint Forces Quarterly,” had published an article entitled “China’s military disaster relief operations revealed a lack of critical,” the article that the lack of air transport capacity, lack of large transport aircraft and heavy-lift helicopters in China’s military power projection capability important short board, which not only restricts the disaster relief operations, may also affect future military combat missions. In addition, reports from the public to see the Chinese army in the disaster relief process is still often need to “hand carry hands”, indicating its special equipment and special training had been lacking.