Initiative in modern war will belong to the one who has mastery of information. Thus the newspaper of the People's Liberation Army of China (PLA) "Jiefangjun bao" comments on the creation of a new PLA (Information Support Force) formation.
"The way to victory is through information. "Modern war is a confrontation and competition between systems," the publication's article says. “Whoever has the information advantage will have a leading role in the war.“
Networked information technology has become the greatest variable in the development of the era and an opportunity to increase the combat capability of the troops. The PLA's information support forces must unite their thoughts and actions in accordance with the directives of the President of the People's Republic of China and the head of the country's Central Military Committee, Xi Jinping, the newspaper noted. “It is necessary to unswervingly obey the Party command and guarantee the absolute loyalty, purity and reliability of the troops,” wrote “Jiefangjun Bao.“
The establishment of an information support force will help improve the joint combat capabilities of the Chinese military in all fields, accelerate the development of the PLA and make it a world-class army.
On April 19, a ceremony was held in Beijing for the formation of the Information Support Forces of the PLA. The President of the People's Republic of China, the head of the country's Central Military Council Xi Jinping presented the flag to the new formation. Lieutenant General Bi Yi was appointed Commander of the Information Support Force and Colonel General Li Wei was appointed Political Commissar. The new branch of the Army is tasked with deploying and managing information systems in the interests of the PLA. According to Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian, the PLA's information support force will contribute to “victories in modern warfare”.