completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects and achieving the great
rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
China’s armed forces mainly shoulder the following strategic tasks:
-- To deal with a wide range of emergencies and military threats, and effectively safeguard the
sovereignty and security of China’s territorial land, air and sea;
-- To resolutely safeguard the unification of the motherland;
-- To safeguard China’s security and interests in new domains;
-- To safeguard the security of China’s overseas interests;
-- To maintain strategic deterrence and carry out nuclear counterattack;
-- To participate in regional and international security cooperation and maintain regional and world peace;
-- To strengthen efforts in operations against infiltration, separatism and terrorism so as to maintain
China’s political security and social stability; and
-- To perform such tasks as emergency rescue and disaster relief, rights and interests protection, guard
duties, and support for national economic and social development.
III. Strategic Guideline of Active Defense
The strategic concept of active defense is the essence of the CPC’s military strategic thought. From the
long-term practice of revolutionary wars, the people’s armed forces have developed a complete set of
strategic concepts of active defense, which boils down to: adherence to the unity of strategic defense and
operational and tactical offense; adherence to the principles of defense, self-defense and post-emptive
strike; and adherence to the stance that “We will not attack unless we are attacked, but we will surely
counterattack if attacked.”
Shortly after the founding of the PRC in 1949, the Central Military Commission (CMC) established the
military strategic guideline of active defense, and later, in line with the developments and changes in the
national security situation, had made a number of major revisions of it. In 1993 the military strategic
guideline of the new era was formulated, which took winning local wars in conditions of modern
technology, particularly high technology, as the basic point in making preparation for military struggle
(PMS). In 2004, the guideline was further substantiated, and the basic point for PMS was modified to
winning local wars under conditions of informationization.
China’s socialist nature, fundamental national interests and the objective requirement of taking the path
of peaceful development all demand that China unswervingly adhere to and enrich the strategic concept
of active defense. Guided by national security and development strategies, and required by the situation
and their tasks in the new historical period, China’s armed forces will continue to implement the military
strategic guideline of active defense and enhance military strategic guidance as the times so require.
They will further broaden strategic vision, update strategic thinking and make strategic guidance more
forward-looking. A holistic approach will be taken to balance war preparation and war prevention, rights
protection and stability maintenance, deterrence and warfighting, and operations in wartime and
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