Chinese Warfighting: The PLA Experience since 1949 The PLA Experience since 1949

This is the first systematic study of modern China's military campaigns and the actual fighting conducted by the People's Liberation Army since the founding of the People's Republic. It provides a general overview of the evolution of PLA military doctrine, and then focuses on major combat episodes from the civil war with the Nationalists to the last significant combat in Vietnam in 1979, in addition to navy and air operations through 1999. In contrast to the many works on the specifics and hardware of China's military modernization, this book discusses such topics as military planning, command, and control; fighting and politics; combat tactics and performance; technological catch-up and doctrinal flexibility; the role of Mao Zedong; scale and typologies of fighting; and deterrence. The contributors include scholars from Mainland China, Taiwan, and the United States, who draw from a wealth of fresh archival sources.

1. Introduction: Patterns of PLA Warfighting, Mark A. Ryan, David Finkelstein, and Michael A. McDevitt; 2. Change and Continuity in Chinese Military Doctrine: 1949-1999, Paul H.B. Godwin; 3. The Beiping-Tianjin Campaign of 1948-49: The Strategic and Operational Thinking of the People's Liberation Army, Larry M. Wortzel; 4. The Last Campaign to Unify China: The CCP's Unrealized Plan to Liberate Taiwan, 1949-1950, He Di; 5. Command, Control and the PLA's Offensive Campaigns in Korea, 1950-1951, Shu Guang Zhang; 6. What China Learned from Its "Forgotten War" in Korea, Bin Yu; 7. PLA Attacks and Amphibious Operations during the Taiwan Strait Crises of 1954-55 and 1958, Xiaobing Li; 8. PLA Operational Principles and Limited War: The Sino-Indian War of 1962, Cheng Feng and Larry M. Wortzel; 9. The Sino-Soviet Border Conflicts of 1969: New Evidence Three Decades Later, Thomas Robinson; 10. Vietnamese Perceptions of the 1979 War with China, Henry J. Kenny; 11. The PLA Navy at War, 1949-1999: From Coastal Defense to Distant Operations, Alexander C. Huang; 12. Air Combat for the People's Republic: The People's Liberation Army Air Force in Action, 1949-1969, Xiaoming Zhang

Mark A. Ryan, David M. Finkelstein, Michael A. McDevitt, CNA Corporation