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China should emulate U.S. command system, state media says

The article is the "most explicit statement" by Beijing's military media to emphasize a need to learn from the West.

By Elizabeth Shim
Over 12,000 soldiers and hundreds of tanks, ballistic missile launchers, amphibious assault vehicles, drones, fighter jets, helicopters and other military equipment participate in a massive parade marking the 70th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II in Beijing on Sept. 3. In September, Chinese President Xi Jinping had said he would downsize the country’s 2.3 million-member armed forced to 300,000. File Photo by Stephen Shaver/UPI
Over 12,000 soldiers and hundreds of tanks, ballistic missile launchers, amphibious assault vehicles, drones, fighter jets, helicopters and other military equipment participate in a massive parade marking the 70th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II in Beijing on Sept. 3. In September, Chinese President Xi Jinping had said he would downsize the country’s 2.3 million-member armed forced to 300,000. File Photo by Stephen Shaver/UPI | License Photo

HONG KONG, Oct. 9 (UPI) -- Beijing's military could learn a few things from the United States' integrated command system, according to a Chinese military commentator.

In an article for China National Defense News, a state media outlet, Li Wenqing said the People's Liberation Army should replace its Soviet-style command structure with a U.S. model that consolidates the military's seven command regions into four, The South China Morning Post reported.

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Xu Guangyu, a retired Chinese major general, said the article is the "most explicit statement" by the state's military media to emphasize a need to learn from the West.

In September, Chinese President Xi Jinping had said he would downsize the country's 2.3 million-member armed forced to 300,000, and the move was welcomed by many military officials. One unidentified senior colonel, however, said the move to consolidate could be met with resistance from senior officials unwilling to hand over power.

"It is almost certain the seven military commands will be remodeled [into] four, the air force and navy will be expanded, and some military departments and institutions will be integrated or even scrapped," he said.

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The Chinese military newspaper said the U.S. victory in the first Gulf War was possible because of its C4ISR systems that integrated computerized command, control and communications; intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance. The model should be followed at the risk of "aggravating...existing disputes [within the PLA]" because "[China] should not stick to yesterday's paradigm when considering tomorrow's warfare," Li wrote.

Xi has been reforming the PLA since assuming power in 2012. During his period of rule, China has begun to cooperate more closely with the United States on North Korea denuclearization.

On Thursday and Friday, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken met with China's top diplomats and military officials in Beijing to discuss "the urgent need to pursue denuclearization," on the Korean peninsula, Yonhap reported.

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