India must wake up to Xi Jinping’s military reforms
The Indian polity’s obsession with Pakistan means that it continues to ignore the changes happening in China
Every five years, the Communist Party of China (CCP) Congress has become one of the most keenly watched events with China’s ascent in global inter-state hierarchy. The CCP Congress gives outsiders an opportunity to discern political trends in one of the most influential countries of the world.
Xi Jinping was formally named the CCP’s “core” leader (hexin) in October, a title previously given to Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping, and Jiang Zemin, but not to Hu Jintao.
One of the most interesting developments out of China has been Xi’s attempts to shake up the PLA and to set the civil-military balance in favour of the CCP. Reform of the Central Military Commission underscores Xi’s dominance in the army. No other CC P leader, including Mao, has controlled the military to the same extent that Xi does today.
Defence reforms have been a priority for Xi who wants to make the PLA a lean, mean fighting force. In order to improve the PLA’s combat readiness and war-fighting capabilities, Xi’s reforms are aimed at transforming China’s military operations from a Russianstyle, army-centric system toward a westernstyle joint command.
Xi’s military reforms will certainly make the Chinese military a more effective fighting force in the coming years. Though there remain some concerns that Chinese military prowess remains largely untested, that too is changing with the Chinese military evacuating Chinese nationals from conflict zones and its navy’s presence in the international anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden.
Not surprisingly, the changes will have an impact on an already lopsided India-China military balance. Indian defence reforms continue to be a work in progress and serious efforts still lag behind the requirements of the contemporary challenges and war-fighting. The three services continue to undercut one another in emphasising jointery and oneupmanship remains the norm. The political leadership remains shy of pushing through the much-needed defence reforms. While the growing material imbalance between China and India remains a problem, it pales in comparison to the structural and organisational changes that are needed to make Indian defence forces truly cutting edge. Indian polity’s obsession with Pakistan means that it continues to ignore the far-reaching changes taking place in China.
Hopefully, as Xi consolidates his power even further this week, Indian policy makers and defence planners can rise from their slumber to take on a China which is getting better by the day at mobilising its hard power to achieve its foreign policy and national security objectives.