By Carlyle A. Thayer*
This Background Brief was originally submitted to Australia Commonwealth Department of Defence Inquiry on the 2013 Defence White Paper on February 28, 2013. How has this assessment stood up after eight years?
China’s 2010 Defence White Paper enumerated four national defence objectives including accelerating the modernization of national defence and the armed forces. China’s military strategy to achieve these objectives is encapsulated in National Military Strategic Guidelines for the New Period that propounded an operational doctrine termed “Active Defence.” China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) is tasked with three essential missions: defeating invasion from the sea, defending territorial sovereignty, and protecting maritime rights.
