The Strategic Thinking Of The Communists Of China

Author : U. S. Military
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781696935333
Total Pages : 78 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (353 download)

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Download or read book Daoism to Maoism and Everything in Between written by U. S. Military and published by . This book was released on 2019-10 with total page 78 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: After two centuries of humiliation and loss, the People's Republic of China is now a major political and economic actor. Western observers expected China to liberalize with economic growth, and for China's rise to be peaceful. China's economy is now second only to the United States, but China is increasingly authoritarian. While China's rise was largely peaceful for decades, China is increasingly belligerent and aggressively seeks territorial expansion. While Chinese leaders have worked diligently to understand the West, Western leaders have done far less to understand China.Among the many ideologies, philosophies and ideas across China's long history, Daoism holds a unique and powerful influence even today. For Western students of China, Daoism is a good place to begin their study. This monograph seeks to determine the extent of Daoist influence on contemporary operational and strategic thinking in the People's Republic of China. This monograph will address the research question, "How has Daoism influenced Chinese strategy and operational art since 1949?" To answer this question, this monograph includes an overview of Daoism, influences on military thought in China until 1850, influences on military thought from 1850-1949, and contemporary influences. The central thesis is that Daoism substantially influenced contemporary Chinese operational and strategic thinking in three ways: through Daoist influence on Sun-Tzu and other ancient military thinkers, through Daoist influence on Mao Zedong's adaptation of Marxism into "Socialism with Chinese Characteristics," and through the current hybrid of ancient and modern approaches that dominates current national security thought in the People's Republic of China.This compilation includes a reproduction of the 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community.Contents: 1. Introduction * 2. The "Golden Thread" of Daoism and Chinese Military Thought Before 1850 * 3. Chinese Military Thought 1850-1949 * 4. The "Red Thread", Political and Military Influence of Mao Zedong Before 1949 * 5. Chinese Military and National Security Since 1949 * 6. President Xi Jinping, "The Governance of China" * 7. Modern Chinese National Security Structure * 8. Modern Chinese Strategic and Operational Documents * 9. ConclusionAs the PRC grows in influence and military capability, it is imperative the United States and her allies understand Chinese cultural view of strategy and operational art. China's history varies substantially from the history of the West, and so does her view of war. An improved understanding of the Chinese strategic and operational "theory of reality" will reduce the chance of a war started by miscalculation by one or both parties. It will also reduce the chance the United States will unwittingly cooperate in the Chinese bid for ascendancy. Finally, and most importantly, understanding Chinese strategy and operational art will help the United States prevail in any conflict initiated by China. While Communism has become the dominant ideology in modern China, this monograph contends that Daoism still influences China after two thousand years. In particular, this monograph focuses on the impact of Daoism on the view of strategy in the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the view of operational art within the People's Liberation Army (PLA). The research question addressed in this monograph is "How has Daoism influenced Chinese strategy and operational art since 1949?"