At an official ceremony of the People's Liberation Army on Dec 31, Xi Jinping, Party general secretary and Central Military Commission chairman, conferred military flags on the general command for the PLA Army, the PLA Rocket Force and the PLA Strategic Support Force.

The establishment of these three forces is part of the grand reform of the military. At a meeting of the CMC on Nov 24-26, Xi delivered a speech emphasizing the importance of deepening the military reform. Now, more than a month later, the CMC has released a guideline on its implementation.

According to the guideline, a new structure will be established in which the CMC takes charge of the overall administration of the PLA, the Chinese People's Armed Police and the militia and reserve forces. Besides, battle zones will replace military zones, while non-fighting units will be massively reduced to curb redundancy.

While 2015 saw reforms in the command system, this year will see the reduction in the number of personnel and reform of military academies and armed police forces, according to the guideline. The reform of the military is aimed at modernizing the PLA so that it suits the current needs and is more capable of defending China's international interests and security.

(China Daily 01/04/2016 page8)