Xi Jinping’s Thoughts on Strengthening the Army

It refers to a series of major strategic ideas, major theoretical viewpoints, and major decisions and deployments concerning national defense and army building proposed by Xi Jinping starting from the new characteristics and new situations of domestic and international developments and changes, which profoundly explains the fundamental, directional and overall major issues in national defense and army building. Xi Jinping’s thoughts on strengthening the army mainly focus on the Party’s goal of building a strong army under the new situation, on military strategic guidance and preparations for military struggles, on the strategy of building armed forces through political work under the new historical conditions, on deepening national defense and army reform, on further promoting governing the army in accordance with the law and with strict discipline, on comprehensively strengthening the Party building in the army, on implementing the military-civilian integrated development strategy, and on military dialectics, etc. Xi Jinping’s thoughts on strengthening the army closely integrate the goal of building a strong army into the Chinese Dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is a dream of creating both a strong country and a strong army. To realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, we must uphold the unity of building a rich nation and a strong army, and strive to build a strong national defense and a strong army.

The Chinese Dream includes the dream of strong army, and the dream of strong army supports the Chinese Dream. National defense and army building have a strategic positioning in the process of Chinese national rejuvenation. The theme of Xi Jinping’s thoughts on strengthening the army is “strengthening and revitalizing the army”, including the ideological foundation, goal requirements, organizational guarantee, talent support and foreign policy of the road of strengthening the army with Chinese characteristics. The core of Xi Jinping’s thoughts on strengthening the army is to build a people's army that listens to the Party's command, is able to win battles, and has a good style of work. It has expounded on the Party's goal of building a strong army under the new situation, scientifically summarized our Party's successful experience in building and governing the army, summarized the fundamental principles, functions and purposes of our army building, profoundly revealed the internal laws of army building under the new situation, exemplified the practical needs of effectively fulfilling the mission of the people’s army, and formed the “general outline” of national defense and army building. The goal of building a strong army has distinct political, value and practical attributes. Listening to the Party’s command is the soul and determines the political direction of army building; being able to win the battle is the core, reflecting the basic functions of the army and the fundamental direction of army building; good style is the guarantee, which is related to the nature, purpose and true quality of the army.

The three elements are interrelated and inseparable, and are unified in the great practice of building a strong people's army. They are the historical and logical starting points for the innovative development of the Party's military guiding theory after the 18th CPC National Congress. The fundamental requirement of Xi Jinping’s thoughts on strengthening the army is to uphold the Party ’s absolute leadership over the army, emphasizing upholding the Party ’s absolute leadership over the army is the top priority of strengthening and revitalizing the army, and we should always put ideological and political construction in the first place of military building; the fundamental direction is to increase combat effectiveness, emphasizing that we must firmly establish the only and fundamental standard of combat effectiveness, insist on all construction and work focusing on fighting a battle, and ensure that the troops can come, fight and win the battle when they are called up. Xi Jinping’s thoughts on strengthening the army imply the spirit of reform and innovation, emphasizing that deepening national defense and army reform is a “big test”, and the prominent contradictions and problems that restrict national defense and army building should be solved, so as to build a modern military power system with Chinese characteristics; and reflect the theoretical courage and political wisdom of exploration and reform and innovation, providing a powerful ideological weapon for opening up a new situation in national defense and army building with the spirit of reform and innovation. Xi Jinping’s thoughts on strengthening the army is synchronous with the Party's theoretical innovation, reflecting the fundamental requirements of the “four comprehensive” strategic layout, and the unity of building a rich country and a strong army, representing the “Military Chapter” of Xi Jinping's Socialist Thought with Chinese Characteristics in the New Era. It is inherited and developed from Mao Zedong's military thoughts, Deng Xiaoping's thoughts on army building in the new period, Jiang Zemin's thoughts on national defense and army building, and Hu Jintao's thoughts on national defense and army building, enriches and develops the Party's military guidance theory, and is a scientific guide for strengthening and revitalizing the army under the new situation, providing a fundamental guide for accelerating the national defense and military modernization.