Invigorate the Army by Applying Science and Technology

The Party's important strategic deployment to achieve the goal of building a strong army under the new historical conditions, together with building armed forces through political work, reforming and strengthening the army, and governing the army according to law, form a unified macro layout. The proposal of rejuvenating the army through science and technology is based on the CPC’s deep understanding of the law of social development in the long-term revolution and construction practices. In September 1988, Deng Xiaoping put forward the theoretical innovation proposition of historical materialism of “science and technology is the first productive force”, which has great guiding significance for the development of socialism with Chinese characteristics. The expansion of this theoretical proposition in the military field reveals that science and technology is the most active and revolutionary factor in military development. In September 1997, Chairman Jiang Zemin of the Central Military Commission pointed out that we must attach importance to strengthening the army through science and technology. On this basis, he further proposed to implement the strategy of strengthening the army through science and technology. The core contents of implementing the strategy of strengthening the military through science and technology were clarified: to place relying on scientific and technological progress to increase combat effectiveness in the strategic position of national defense and army building, enhance the country’s military scientific and technological strength, and comprehensively increase the scientific and technological content of army building.

After being the chairman of the Central Military Commission, Hu Jintao put forward the important thinking of “scientific management should always be an important link to promote scientific and technological progress and innovation, so as to continuously improve the level of scientific management”, so that science and technology has always been a strong support for the development of our army. After serving as chairman of the Central Military Commission, Xi Jinping proposed the Party’s goal of building a strong army in the new period, and science and technology was included in the macro layout of strengthening and revitalizing the army. In March 2017 at the Plenary Meeting of the PLA Delegation during the 5th Session of the 12th National People's Congress, Xi Jinping emphasized to accelerate the establishment of a military-civilian integration innovation system, step up efforts to rejuvenate the army through science and technology, adhere to increasing combat effectiveness through science and technology innovation, provide strong scientific and technological support for our army building, and elevate rejuvenating the army through science and technology to a new height.

On July 19, Xi Jinping pointed out in important speeches for the newly formed Academy of Military Sciences, National Defense University, and National University of Defense Technology that we should implement the military strategic guidelines under the new situation with the Party's goal of building a strong army under the new situation as the guidance, promote building armed forces through political work, reforming and strengthening the army, and governing the army according to law, and fully implement the strategy of rejuvenating the army through science and technology. This means that rejuvenating the army through science and technology has become an important part of the strategic layout of building a strong army. In an important speech for celebrating the 90th anniversary of the founding of the army, Xi Jinping further emphasized that, to advance the cause of building a strong army, we must insist on building armed forces through political work, reforming and strengthening the army, rejuvenating the army through science and technology, and governing the army according to law, thus forming more clear and complete strategic layout of strengthening and revitalizing the army. The Report of the 19th CPC National Congress has included rejuvenating the army through science and technology into the basic strategy of upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era. Rejuvenating the army through science and technology is an important content of Xi Jinping's thoughts on strengthening the army, which is of great significance to the realization of the goal of building a strong army.