China's Advance Into the Sea and the Maritime Militia Masaaki Yatsuzuka

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

China's Advance Into the Sea and the Maritime Militia Masaaki Yatsuzuka NIDS Commentary No. 53 China’s Advance into the Sea and the Maritime Militia Masaaki Yatsuzuka, Regional Studies Department No. 53 July 15, 2016 China’s Aggressive Advance into the Sea armed organization that is not divorced from production under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, an integral part of the armed China is currently proceeding with active forces of the People's Republic of China, and an maritime expansion backed by its economic and assistant and reserve force of the Chinese People's military power. The Chinese government is Liberation Army.” (Article 2).In addition, Article 5 attempting to strengthen effective control while states “Under the leadership of the State Council repeating low intensity threats that do not lead to and the Central Military Commission, militia work military escalation. These Chinese actions are is supervised by the General Staff Department of called "the salami-slicing strategy" and "creeping the Chinese People's Liberation Army (Note: the expansion", etc., causing friction with neighboring Defense Mobilization Department since military countries. reform)”, “the Provincial military district, the In this China maritime policy, what is military district, and the provincial people's armed heightening its presence is the Chinese maritime department (A government agency in charge of the militia. Xi Jinping in April 2013, immediately after mobilization of militias placed at the sub-provincial assuming the highest position in the party, state and base-level of government) are military command military, visited the maritime militia in Tanmen, institutions in each area and are responsible for Hainan province. Three months later, in July, a new militia operations in that area. "Militia" reminds us maritime militia organization was formed in Sansha of a wide range of armed groups such as guerrillas, City, which has jurisdiction over the South China partisans, volunteers, private soldiers, and military Sea, and in recent years many conflicts have cliques, but as seen in the above provisions, the occurred in the disputed waters of the South China Chinese militia is an official armed organization Sea in which maritime militia organizations were that receives command orders from both the allegedly involved. While the presence of maritime government and the military as a subsidiary agency militia is increasing, the structure and operation of of the People's Liberation Army. the organization still remains enigmatic. In addition, a party organization has been In this paper, I will try to examine what roles established inside the maritime militia, to relay the maritime militia organizations play in China's wishes of the Chinese Communist Party. For maritime policy, what problems might arise, and example, in Wenzhou Yueqing City, a senior what political measure is required through an official of the city's health department, who is a analysis of the relationship between maritime member of the Chinese Communist Party, is also militia organizational structure, law enforcement concurrently serving as a leader of a small group in agencies and military institutions. the maritime militia emergency relief division of the area, and four CCP members belong to the party A Complexly Structured Maritime Militia small group. This is probably because the Communist Party and government officials, by What kind of organization is the marine militia? taking the leadership of the maritime militia, are The first thing which should be confirmed is a chain tasked with the transfer of the orders from the party, of command system. To the extent that it is an military, coast guard and other law enforcement organization, not merely a fishermen's get-together, agencies to the rank and file of the fishermen there should be a chain of command system. through the party organization. That is to say, the According to China’s “Regulations on Militia maritime militia is institution with party Work”, it is stipulated that “The militia is a mass organization which not only receives commands NIDS Commentary N0. 53 and orders from both the military and the and information gathering on foreign science government but also communicate them internally. research ships, reconnaissance ships and fishing Furthermore, in order to systematically provide boats of other countries guidance to each fishing boat, there are multiple (3) Own maritime interest protection activities: command systems by function. The maritime (g) Daily fishing activities, surveillance activities militia has function-specific divisions such as a and information gathering on suspicious ships in reconnaissance division, an emergency relief disputed waters, (h) Maritime interest protection division, a maritime support division, etc., and duty in wartime respective roles are allocated to them. Also, some military officials propose to establish multi-layered As a feature of the above, what we can point out units in each organization such as Division (营) → first is that diversified cooperative duties with both Company (连) → Platoon (排) → Squad (班) (An the government and the military can be assumed. upper echelon unit consists of 3 to 5 lower echelon However, in actual operations, the chain of units. A squad is one ship). command and cooperation become much more In addition, many Chinese fishermen who complex because varied agencies join the activities. participate in the maritime militia are employed by For example, another military official proposes fishery related corporations (including fishing, food how the maritime militia should cooperate with the processing, ship building and port construction). other agencies in respective activities as follows. Therefore, it is likely that these corporations manage fishermen by recruiting, mobilizing and When the maritime militia: providing fishing boat equipment and compensation. Because of this kind of complex (1) independently carries out maritime organizational structure, the maritime militia information investigation and reconnaissance organization is not just a gathering of fishermen, but alerts, a provincial military district is in charge. is made up of human resources of various (2) joins emergency relief efforts, a maritime backgrounds including fishery food processers, search organization (this seems to be the China shipbuilders, port construction workers, and even Coast Guard) or a local government leads and a more medical personnel, local government and the provincial military district system also takes part. CCP officials. (3) carries out maritime interest protection Given this situation, it can be said that the activities, a provincial military district system maritime militia usually engages in fishery related systematically is in charge in cooperation with industries, but also, as needed, is a paramilitary local relevant departments under the guidance of a organization involved in various activities local party committee and government. safeguarding Chinese maritime interests while (4) cooperates with maritime law enforcement, systematically receiving orders from the military the Coast Guard department is in charge and the and the government. provincial military district cooperates under the unified guidance of a local party committee and Maritime Militia Tasked with Various Roles government, (5) assists naval activities, it is under the unified Then, what roles is the maritime militia tasked command of the navy with the cooperation of the with? In recent years, People’s Liberation Army provincial military district system. officials have made various proposals concerning the organization of the maritime militia. It is hard Of course, maritime militia is still in the process to believe that the maritime militia is operated just of institutionalization. Therefore, the as they proposed, but at least we can infer roles that organizational structures and cooperation systems the organization may play. are likely to have various forms by each region, Certain military officials propose the following and we should not expect that they will assume three major roles regarding the activities of the roles exactly as expected. On the other hand, it is maritime militia necessary to remark on the fact that local government and military agencies actively carry (1) Support for the People’s Liberation Army: out various capability assistance in order for (a) Participation in intelligence operations maritime militia to take responsibility for such including diversionary operation, (b) duties and its ability is steadily increasing. The Transportation of military supplies, (c) Medical Chinese Government has already provided more and equipment support for the military, (d) than 40,000 Chinese fishing vessels with Beidou Cooperation with defense operations Satellite Positioning System and also Hainan (2) Cooperation with law enforcement agencies: province and Sansha city have set up maritime (e) Maritime interest protection activities through militia military outposts on the islands in South fishing operation in disputed waters, (f) Sabotage China Sea, which are examples of enhancing NIDS Commentary No. 53 information sharing system between the maritime On the other hand, we have to point out the issue militia, law enhancement agencies such as the of the systematization of the maritime militia. Coast Guard and the Navy. According to the investigation publicized in 2015, Furthermore, local governments attempt to 46% of the maritime militia members were only expand their presence in the open sea by after a political position that come with
Recommended publications
  • The People's Liberation Army
    January 5, 2021 China Primer: The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Overview sovereignty) as the “operational target” of military The two-million-strong People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is preparations since 1993. China’s defense planners anticipate the military arm of the People’s Republic of China’s that a military confrontation over Taiwan could involve (PRC’s) ruling Communist Party. The Trump “powerful enemy interference,” an apparent reference to the Administration identified strategic competition with China United States. China also has sought military capabilities to and Russia as “the primary concern in U.S. national dominate its maritime periphery and to support foreign security” in 2018 and U.S. defense officials have since said policy and economic initiatives globally. that China is the U.S. Department of Defense’s (DOD’s) top priority. According to a 2020 DOD report, the PLA has PLA Modernization and Key Capabilities “already achieved parity with—or even exceeded—the Since 1978, China has engaged in a sustained and broad United States” in several areas in which it has focused its effort to transform the PLA from an infantry-heavy, low- military modernization efforts and is strengthening its technology, ground forces-centric force into a leaner, more ability to “counter an intervention by an adversary in the networked, high-technology force with an emphasis on joint Indo-Pacific region and project power globally.” See also operations and power projection. In 2015 and 2016, Xi IF11712 on U.S.-China Military-to-Military Relations. publicly launched the most ambitious reform and reorganization of the PLA since the 1950s.
    [Show full text]
  • Commission on the National Guard and Reserves 2521 S
    COMMISSION ON THE NATIONAL GUARD AND RESERVES 2521 S. CLARK STREET, SUITE 650 ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA 22202 ARNOLD L. PUNARO The Honorable Carl Levin The Honorable John McCain CHAIRMAN Chairman, Committee Ranking Member, Committee on Armed Services on Armed Services WILLIAM L. BALL, III United States Senate United States Senate Washington, DC 20510 Washington, DC 20510 LES BROWNLEE RHETT B. DAwsON The Honorable Ike Skelton The Honorable Duncan Hunter Chairman, Committee Ranking Member, Committee LARRY K. ECKLES on Armed Services on Armed Services United States House of United States House of PATRICIA L. LEWIS Representatives Representatives Washington, DC 20515 Washington, DC 20515 DAN MCKINNON WADE ROWLEY January 31, 2008 JAMES E. SHERRARD III Dear Chairmen and Ranking Members: DONALD L. STOCKTON The Commission on the National Guard and Reserves is pleased to submit to E. GORDON STUMP you its final report as required by Public Law 108-375, the Ronald Reagan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005 (as amended by J. STANTON THOMpsON Public Law 109-163). As you know, Congress chartered this Commission to assess the reserve component of the U.S. military and to recommend changes to ensure that the National Guard and other reserve components are organized, trained, equipped, compensated, and supported to best meet the needs of U.S. national security. The Commission’s first interim report, containing initial findings and the description of a strategic plan to complete our work, was delivered on June 5, 2006. The second interim report, delivered on March 1, 2007, was required by Public Law 109-364, the John Warner National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007, enacted on October 17, 2006.
    [Show full text]
  • Answer: Maoism Is a Form of Communism Developed by Mao Tse Tung
    Ques 1: What is Maoism? Answer: Maoism is a form of communism developed by Mao Tse Tung. It is a doctrine to capture State power through a combination of armed insurgency, mass mobilization and strategic alliances. The Maoists also use propaganda and disinformation against State institutions as other components of their insurgency doctrine. Mao called this process, the ‘Protracted Peoples War’, where the emphasis is on ‘military line’ to capture power. Ques 2: What is the central theme of Maoist ideology? Answer: The central theme of Maoist ideology is the use of violence and armed insurrection as a means to capture State power. ‘Bearing of arms is non-negotiable’ as per the Maoist insurgency doctrine. The maoist ideology glorifies violence and the ‘Peoples Liberation Guerrilla Army’ (PLGA) cadres are trained specifically in the worst forms of violence to evoke terror among the population under their domination. However, they also use the subterfuge of mobilizing people over issues of purported inadequacies of the existing system, so that they can be indoctrinated to take recourse to violence as the only means of redressal. Ques 3: Who are the Indian Maoists? Answer: The largest and the most violent Maoist formation in India is the Communist Party of India (Maoist). The CPI (Maoist) is an amalgamation of many splinter groups, which culminated in the merger of two largest Maoist groups in 2004; the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), People War and the Maoist Communist Centre of India. The CPI (Maoist) and all its front organizations formations have been included in the list of banned terrorist organizations under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.
    [Show full text]
  • The China Coast Guard: Shifting from Civilian to Military Control in the Era
    FEATURE The China Coast Guard Shifting from Civilian to Military Control in the Era of Regional Uncertainty ULISES GRANADOS Abstract As part of the restructuring of state organizations announced in March 2018, it is known that the China Coast Guard (CCG), previously controlled by the State Oceanic Administration, is coming under the administration of the People’s Armed Police (PAP) from the Central Military Commission (CMC). As a para- digmatic shift from a joint civilian–military control (State Council–CMC) to a purely military one, the reorganization of the CCG, only five years from the latest reshuffling, seems to reveal an the party’s increasing control over the military as outlined in the September 2017 CCP Central Committee and also the intention by the Chinese central government to provide the CCG with more flexibility and authority to act decisively in disputed waters in the East and South China Seas if needed. This article inquiries into the causes, logic, and likely regional conse- quences of such a decision. Amid the upgrading of insular features in the Spratlys, the deployment of bombers in the Paracels, and overall modernization of China’s naval capabilities, the article also explores plausible developments in which the PAP- led CCG, irregular maritime militias, and People’s Liberation Army Navy forces might coordinate more effectively efforts to safeguard self-proclaimed rights in littoral and blue- water areas in dispute. Introduction During the last eight years, East China Sea (ECS) and South China Sea (SCS) waters have been the setting of increased Chinese civil and naval activity that have altered the balance of power among Northeast Asian and Southeast Asian states, trying to cope with a more robust projection of Chinese maritime power.
    [Show full text]
  • 2019 China Military Power Report
    OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE Annual Report to Congress: Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China 2019 Office of the Secretary of Defense Preparation of this report cost the Department of Defense a total of approximately $181,000 in Fiscal Years 2018-2019. This includes $12,000 in expenses and $169,000 in DoD labor. Generated on 2019May02 RefID: E-1F4B924 OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE Annual Report to Congress: Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE Annual Report to Congress: Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China Annual Report to Congress: Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China 2019 A Report to Congress Pursuant to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000, as Amended Section 1260, “Annual Report on Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China,” of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019, Public Law 115-232, which amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000, Section 1202, Public Law 106-65, provides that the Secretary of Defense shall submit a report “in both classified and unclassified form, on military and security developments involving the People’s Republic of China. The report shall address the current and probable future course of military-technological development of the People’s Liberation Army and the tenets and probable development of Chinese security strategy and military strategy, and of the military organizations and operational concepts supporting such development over the next 20 years.
    [Show full text]
  • China's Quest for Global Primacy: an Analysis of Chinese International
    C O R P O R A T I O N TIMOTHY R. HEATH, DEREK GROSSMAN, ASHA CLARK China’s Quest for Global Primacy An Analysis of Chinese International and Defense Strategies to Outcompete the United States For more information on this publication, visit www.rand.org/t/RRA447-1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available for this publication. ISBN: 978-1-9774-0615-6 Published by the RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, Calif. © Copyright 2021 RAND Corporation R® is a registered trademark. Cover images: prospective56/iStock/ Getty Images Plus; MF3d/iStock/Getty Images Plus Limited Print and Electronic Distribution Rights This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited. Permission is given to duplicate this document for personal use only, as long as it is unaltered and complete. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial use. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions. The RAND Corporation is a research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges to help make communities throughout the world safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous. RAND is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and committed to the public interest. RAND’s publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors. Support RAND Make a tax-deductible charitable contribution at www.rand.org/giving/contribute www.rand.org Preface This research explores possible international and defense strategies that China might employ to outcompete the United States and achieve a position of international primacy.
    [Show full text]
  • People's Liberation Army: Army Campaign Doctrine in Transition
    WL KNO EDGE NCE ISM SA ER IS E A TE N K N O K C E N N T N I S E S J E N A 3 V H A A N H Z И O E P W O I T E D N E Z I A M I C O N O C C I O T N S H O E L C A I N M Z E N O T People’s Liberation Army: Army Campaign Doctrine in Transition KEVIN McCAULEY FOREIGN MILITARY STUDIES OFFICE Open Source, Foreign Perspective, Underconsidered/Understudied Topics Approved for Public Release; Distribution Unlimited People’s Liberation Army: Army Campaign Doctrine in Transition By Kevin McCauley Contents BACKGROUND .................................................................................................................................................. 3 PLA ARMY CAMPAIGNS AND POTENTIAL CONFLICT AREAS .............................................................. 3 AREA OF OPERATIONS ................................................................................................................................... 5 THE PLA’S CURRENT VIEW OF WARFARE ................................................................................................ 6 PLA DOCTRINE IN TRANSITION: THE IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGY AND CHARACTERISTICS OF FUTURE WARFARE .......................................................................................................................................... 8 EMERGING AND DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGIES ............................................................................................................ 9 HYBRID WARFARE ..................................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • China COI Compilation-March 2014
    China COI Compilation March 2014 ACCORD is co-funded by the European Refugee Fund, UNHCR and the Ministry of the Interior, Austria. Commissioned by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Division of International Protection. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author. ACCORD - Austrian Centre for Country of Origin & Asylum Research and Documentation China COI Compilation March 2014 This COI compilation does not cover the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau, nor does it cover Taiwan. The decision to exclude Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan was made on the basis of practical considerations; no inferences should be drawn from this decision regarding the status of Hong Kong, Macau or Taiwan. This report serves the specific purpose of collating legally relevant information on conditions in countries of origin pertinent to the assessment of claims for asylum. It is not intended to be a general report on human rights conditions. The report is prepared on the basis of publicly available information, studies and commentaries within a specified time frame. All sources are cited and fully referenced. This report is not, and does not purport to be, either exhaustive with regard to conditions in the country surveyed, or conclusive as to the merits of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Every effort has been made to compile information from reliable sources; users should refer to the full text of documents cited and assess the credibility, relevance and timeliness of source material with reference to the specific research concerns arising from individual applications.
    [Show full text]
  • China's Maritime Militia
    141 Chapter 5: China’s Maritime Militia Andrew S. Erickson and Conor M. Kennedy Introduction An important component of China’s local armed forces is the militia. It supports China’s armed forces in a variety of functions, and is seeing expanded mission roles as the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) continues to modernize. While the maritime militia is not a new addition to China’s militia system, it is receiving greater emphasis since China now aspires to become a great maritime power and because maritime disputes in China’s near seas are a growing concern. No official definition of the maritime militia exists in the many sources the authors examined. However, in late 2012 the Zhoushan garrison commander, Zeng Pengxiang, and the garrison’s Mobilization Office described it concisely: “The Maritime Militia is an irreplaceable mass armed organization not released from production and a component of China’s ocean defense armed forces [that enjoys] low sensitivity and great leeway in maritime rights protection actions.”142 141 This chapter is an abridgment of a paper prepared by Dr. Andrew S. Erickson and Mr. Conor Kennedy. Dr. Erickson is professor of strategy at the U.S. Naval War College’s China Maritime Studies Institute (CMSI) and an associate in research at Harvard University’s Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies. Mr. Kennedy is a research assistant in the China Maritime Studies Institute at the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island. He received his MA at the Johns Hopkins University – Nanjing University Center for Chinese and American Studies. The complete paper can be found at https://www.cna.org/cna_files/pdf/Chinas-Maritime- Militia.pdf.
    [Show full text]
  • Section 3: Hotspots Along China's Maritime Periphery
    SECTION 3: HOTSPOTS ALONG CHINA’S MARITIME PERIPHERY Key Findings • U.S. presence and alliance commitments have helped main- tain regional stability in Asia. China’s aggressive actions in the East China Sea, South China Sea, and Taiwan Strait threaten principles such as freedom of navigation, the use of international law to settle disputes, and free trade. If Bei- jing continues to increase its control over the East and South China seas, the United States could receive requests for ad- ditional assistance by allies, friends, and partners to improve their capabilities to defend themselves, along with calls for the United States to remain engaged in the region to main- tain security and stability. • With China actively preparing contingency plans for oper- ations against U.S. allies, friends, and partners along Chi- na’s maritime periphery, the United States and China could quickly become involved in a conflict if Beijing escalates. This risk becomes greater depending on the level of tensions as- sociated with any of the following flashpoints: the Korean Peninsula, the South China Sea, the East China Sea, and cross-Strait relations. • Chinese leaders are cautious about letting a crisis escalate into conflict, and Chinese military thinkers study “war con- trol” as a method for limiting the scope of a conflict to mini- mize negative consequences and achieve a victory at minimal cost. However, if Beijing believes the risk of a response to Chinese action is low, China may be tempted to risk brinks- manship to achieve its national objectives. Furthermore, if Beijing is unable to avoid escalation, any crises involving the use of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) create opportuni- ties to widen a crisis into a conflict that results in the use of force.
    [Show full text]
  • Dennis E. Blasko. the Chinese Army Today: Tradition and Transformation for the 21St Century
    Journal of Military and Strategic Studies, Fall 2006, Vol. 9, Issue 1. Dennis E. Blasko. The Chinese Army Today: Tradition and Transformation For the 21st Century. New York: Routledge, 2006. Jerremie Clyde, University of Calgary The Chinese Army Today provides a comprehensive and detailed description, as well as some limited assessment, of China’s current ground forces. Over the past 25 years, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has been increasing its efforts to reform and modernize all aspects of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). The Chinese Army Today places the current PLA ground forces within the context of both the ongoing reforms and the traditions that continue to endure from its beginnings over seventy years ago. This is done through not only focusing on what the PLA is now, but also on the past six years of intensive changes and how they have shaped its membership, order of battle, missions, doctrine, equipment and training. Blasko paints the picture of a unique military force that has transformed itself in significant ways; aware of its own shortcomings, but with a clear plan in place to address them. For more than twenty years, the author served as a military intelligence officer and foreign area officer in the United States Army, specializing in China. He was also an army attaché in Beijing and Hong Kong from 1992 to 1996. Currently, he is a China Specialist for CNA Corporation’s Project Asia team. The author of several articles dealing with the PLA, this latest work makes a valuable contribution to PLA studies and clearly builds on some of those earlier publications.1 This work provides a solid foundation and starting place for anyone working in PLA studies or related areas.
    [Show full text]
  • China's Third Sea Force, the People's Armed
    CHINA MARITIME STUDIES INSTITUTE CENTER FOR NAVAL WARFARE STUDIES U.S. NAVAL WAR COLLEGE 686 CUSHING ROAD (3C) NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND 02841 China’s Third Sea Force, The People’s Armed Forces Maritime Militia: Tethered to the PLA Conor M. Kennedy and Andrew S. Erickson1 China Maritime Report No. 1 March 2017 China Maritime Studies Institute U.S. Naval War College Newport, Rhode Island Summary Amid growing awareness that China’s Maritime Militia acts as a Third Sea Force which has been involved in international sea incidents, it is necessary for decision-makers who may face such contingencies to understand the Maritime Militia’s role in China’s armed forces. Chinese-language open sources reveal a tremendous amount about Maritime Militia activities, both in coordination with and independent of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Using well-documented evidence from the authors’ extensive open source research, this report seeks to clarify the Maritime Militia’s exact identity, organization, and connection to the PLA as a reserve force that plays a parallel and supporting role to the PLA. Despite being a separate component of China’s People’s Armed Forces (PAF), the militia are organized and commanded directly by the PLA’s local military commands. The militia’s status as a separate non-PLA force whose units act as “helpers of the PLA” (解放军的 助手)2 is further reflected in China’s practice of carrying out “joint military, law enforcement, and civilian [Navy-Maritime Law Enforcement-Maritime Militia] defense” (军警民联防). To more accurately capture the identity of the Maritime Militia, the authors propose referring to these irregular forces as the “People’s Armed Forces Maritime Militia” (PAFMM).
    [Show full text]