Last month, Yomiuri Shimbun — one of Japan’s national papers — carried a report that said that China had recently ordered the PLA to establish an Aerospace Force. The branch, which is expected to focus on military operations in space, would be the military’s fifth branch after the PLA Ground, Air, Naval, and the Second Artillery (in charge of China’s nuclear arsenal and ballistic missiles) Forces. It will be complemented by an Aerospace Office under the Central Military Commission.
The Diplomat cannot confirm the validity of the report, and it’s notable that Yomiuri Shimbun appears to have taken the original article down in the last few days (a cached version can be found here). The Pentagon also refused to comment on the article, referring The Diplomat instead to the PLA.
Still, the claim seems plausible on the face of it. As The Diplomat previously noted, while visiting a PLA Air Force Base in April of this year, Xi Jinping urged military officers “to speed up air and space integration and sharpen their offensive and defensive capabilities.” He also called for the creation of a “new type of combat unit” dedicated to this purpose.
The state media outlet, China Daily, quoted a Chinese military expert saying of Xi’s speech: “The United States has paid considerable attention and resources to the integration of capabilities in both air and space, and other powers have also moved progressively toward space militarization… Though China has stated that it sticks to the peaceful use of space, we must make sure that we have the ability to cope with others’ operations in space.”The Diplomat
China's Military Creates New Space Force
Zachary Keck
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