This report reflects an attempt to understand current thinking in the Chinese People's Liberation Army regarding system of systems and systems warfare, as well as current methods of warfighting.
Early on 4 September, China launched a rocket carrying a “reusable experimental spacecraft” according to the state-run Xinhua News Agency – but the vehicle’s purpose is unknown
China’s influence across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has steadily been increasing. Seventeen countries have signed documents related to its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Many countries, including Lebanon, Tunisia, Egypt, and Iraq have seen dramatic increases in Chinese engagement, leading some to question if they are on the verge of becoming Chinese client states. More recently, China has dramatically and visibly increased its aid to a number of MENA countries in response to the recent COVID pandemic.
The Chinese Army is preparing to deploy small, new, tracked war-robots armed with machine guns, night vision, missile loaders and camera sensors to conduct attacks while leaving manned systems at safer stand-off distances.
The state-owned China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC) revealed in a 21 August announcement on its official WeChat social media account that its 716 Research Institute – also known as the Jiangsu Automation Research Institute (JARI) – has launched a new catamaran-hulled multirole unmanned surface vessel (USV).
Photographs have recently emerged indicating that China’s recently paraded WZ-8 high-speed, high-altitude reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) has been assigned to the People’s Liberation Army Air Force’s (PLAAF’s) 30th Air Regiment, which operates from Luhe-Ma’an air base near Nanjing: the capital of China’s eastern Jiangsu Province.
China’s push towards greater civil-military integration in science and technology appears to be gaining momentum as reflected in the 20-22 September Military and Civilian Equipment Technology Achievement Exhibition held in the Chinese city of Xian: the hub for much of the country’s aerospace industry.