In a show of military strength and modernisation, Wednesday’s parade in Beijing marking the 80th anniversary of Japan’s defeat in World War II unveiled the People’s Liberation Army’s most advanced weaponry and its latest command structure reforms.
The spectacle featured formations not just from the PLA’s traditional branches – the Army, Navy, Air Force, Joint Logistics Support Force and Rocket Force – but also three newly established arms: the Information Support Force, the Military Aerospace Force and the Cyberspace Force.
Formations by the new branches were also accompanied by the latest equipment for cyberspace warfare, electronic countermeasures and information support.
Observers said the debut of the new PLA branches signalled Beijing’s drive to reshape its combat doctrine by integrating advanced technologies into cross-force joint operations.
Timothy Heath, a senior international defence researcher at the US-based think tank Rand Corporation, said the new branches and related weapons showed that the PLA had “become a force capable of operating in all domains”.
