The People's Liberation Army Ground Force (PLAGF) is steadily re-organising and re-equipping to conduct 'informa-tised' warfare in local conditions. Reforms beginning in 2015 have consumed and integrated the modernisation efforts of previous leaders of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and formalised a far greater level of party control over the PLA than had been the norm beforehand. The progress and scope of that technical and structural modernisation is such that tracking the PLA's progress towards its goal is difficult, although some lessons can be drawn from examining the equipment delivered to the Western Theatre Command and the Tibet Military Command last year. China's governing strategy for its armed forces is one of deterrence, according to a 2020 paper published by the Australian Journal of Defence (AJoD). The primary goal of the PLA is to deter aggression and defend the homeland from incursions into Chinese territory. This should be achieved without fighting if possible, according to the strategy, yet "it is critical to understand that the doctrine prepares and allows for offensive action at all levels of war if and when the situation demands", the AJoD paper states.
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