Zhang Zhaozhong (; born May 6, 1952) is a retired Chinese

military theorist Military theory is the analysis of normative behavior and trends in military affairs and military history, beyond simply describing events in war. Theories and conceptions of warfare have varied in different places throughout human history. Th ...

at the

PLA National Defense University The People's Liberation Army National Defence University () is a Beijing-based national military university administered by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and funded by the Central Military Commission. The university is the highest militar ...

. He held the rank of

rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

in the

People's Liberation Army Navy The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN; ), also known as the People's Navy, Chinese Navy, or PLA Navy, is the maritime service branch of the People's Liberation Army. The PLAN traces its lineage to naval units fighting during the Chinese ...

prior to his retirement.

Earlier Life

He was born in a small village. Due to the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goal ...

, he was not able to pick his profession when he was enrolled in university, and was given the major in Arabic. He later was put to work as an observer during the Iran-Iraq War.

Career

A frequent commentator on state-run television outlets, Zhang is known of his successful predictions about the

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

and wrong predictions during the

CCTV Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly t ...

live broadcast of the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...

, mainly due to the overestimation of Iraqi military's will to fight and failure to completely understand the American strategy. He is also known for some of his belligerent comments to hide the real military strength of China. The best-known instance was his dramatical denial of the existence of the Chinese stealth fighter J-20 by exaggerating the American technological advantages. In contrast, he also sometimes expresses a low opinion of U.S. military-political will, with his 2012 assertion that the U.S. would "run like a rabbit" if China went to war with Japan over the

Diaoyu Islands The are a group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea, administered by Japan. They are located northeast of Taiwan, east of China, west of Okinawa Island, and north of the southwestern end of the Ryukyu Islands. They are known in main ...

being an example. He also suggested that the PLAN might equip civilian fishing boats for suicide attacks against the United States Navy. Zhaozhong is known for his CCTV commentaries where he has, among other things, said that smog is a good thing for China because it would obscure US laser weapon systems in the event of an attack Due to his misguided statements, Zhang Zhaozhong has become an online

Internet meme An Internet meme, commonly known simply as a meme ( ), is an idea, behavior, style, or image that is spread via the Internet, often through social media platforms. What is considered a meme may vary across different communities on the Internet ...

. The incident has led Chinese netizens to mockingly refer to Zhang as “Chief of the Strategic Fool-You Agency.”

References

Living people 1952 births People's Liberation Army generals from Hebei People's Liberation Army Navy admirals People from Cangzhou Military theorists {{China-mil-bio-stub