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The People's Liberation Army Strategic Support Force was a service branch of the
People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the military of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). It consists of four Military branch, services—People's Liberation Army Ground Force, Ground Force, People's ...
that existed from December 2015 to April 2024. With an aim to improve the army's ability to fight what China terms "informationized conflicts" and enhance the PLA's power projection capabilities in space and
cyberspace Cyberspace is an interconnected digital environment. It is a type of virtual world popularized with the rise of the Internet. The term entered popular culture from science fiction and the arts but is now used by technology strategists, security ...
, the PLASSF was a force purportedly designed to break stovepipes in the intelligence sharing and coordination departments of the different branches. On 19 April 2024, the Strategic Support Force was dissolved and split into three independent arms: the People's Liberation Army Aerospace Force, the People's Liberation Army Cyberspace Force and the People's Liberation Army Information Support Force.


History

At the 2015 China Victory Day Parade, the
Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...
(CCP)
general secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, Power (social and political), power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the org ...
,
President of China The president of China, officially the president of the People's Republic of China, is the List of state representatives of the People's Republic of China, state representative of the China, People's Republic of China. On its own, it is a Fig ...
and Central Military Commission (CMC) chairman
Xi Jinping Xi Jinping, pronounced (born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has been the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China), chairman of the Central Military Commission ...
announced sweeping reforms to the structure of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) and the state security apparatus. On 22 December 2015, the Chinese PLA newsletter, ''Liberation Army Daily'', reported that as part of the joint military exercises taking place that same year, strategic and logistical support forces were included in those exercises along with Intelligence and other high-profile units among the Central Military Commission. On 31 December 2015, the PLA Strategic Support Force held its first annual meeting at the Bayi Building in Beijing. In attendance were the CMC leadership and leaders of the PLA Ground Force and Rocket Force. CMC Chairman Xi Jinping was also in attendance, giving out military flags and instructional speeches, along with CMC Vice Chairmen and CCP Political Department members Fan Changlong and Xu Qiliang. Fan Changlong read out the CMC's orders and decisions issued by Chairman Xi on the formation of the PLA's leadership and forces, while Vice Chairman Xu Qiliang presided over the meeting. On 1 January 2016, the next day, Yang Yujun of the Chinese Ministry of National Defense issued a statement on the new Strategic Support Force describing it as formed by the "functional integration" of various support forces that are strategic, basic, and supportive. Another expert, Rear Admiral Yin Zhuo of the PLA Navy, noted: Specifically, the objectives of the strategic support force were to include: *target acquisition *reconnaissance *undertaking daily navigation operations, space reconnaissance, and management of Beidou satellites *undertaking electronic and cyber warfare and countermeasures Unlike the PLA Rocket Force, the Strategic Support Force is more dedicated to 5th Generation Information Warfare and is structured to engage in the information space, with emphasis on electronic countermeasures, network offense and defense, satellite management, and some of the functions of logistical supply and dispatch. It also responsible for influence operations,
cyberwarfare Cyberwarfare is the use of cyberattack, cyber attacks against an enemy State (polity), state, causing comparable harm to actual warfare and/or disrupting vital computer systems. Some intended outcomes could be espionage, sabotage, propaganda, ...
, and electronic warfare. On 24 July 2019, the government white paper "China's National Defense in a New Era" published by the State Council Information Office stated: On 19 April 2024, the Strategic Support Force was dissolved in a reorganization. Its functions were redistributed to the PLA Cyberspace Force, the PLA Aerospace Force, and the PLA Information Support Force.


Organizational structure

The PLASSF leadership and administrative officials were stationed at their headquarters in the
Haidian District Haidian () is a northwest urban district of Beijing, bordering Xicheng, Beijing, Xicheng and Fengtai, Beijing, Fengtai. It is in area, making it the second-largest district in urban Beijing area (after Chaoyang, Beijing, Chaoyang), and is home ...
of
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
; the functional departments and leadership of the subordinate units were stationed here. The PLASSF oversaw all units responsible for psychological warfare, information warfare, space warfare, cyberwarfare, and electronic warfare operations formerly under the former General Staff Department.PLA Strategic Support Force: The 'Information Umbrella' for China's Military
The Diplomat 1 April 2017
This included the cyber espionage capabilities of the former Third Department, the electronic support measures from the former Fourth Department, and the space-based ISR systems and Aerospace Reconnaissance Bureau and Satellite Main Station, General Political Department, and General Armaments Department, including the launch, telemetry, tracking, and control facilities and research and development organizations.


Functional departments


General Staff Department

The General Staff Department was under the direction of General Li Shangfu, Chief of Staff. His Deputy Chiefs of Staff were Major General Sun Bo and Major General Zhang Minghua. Subordinated to the General Staff Department was the PLASSF Xingcheng "Rehabilitation" Center.


Political Work Department

The Political Work Department was under the direction of Lieutenant General Feng Jianhua. His Deputy Directors were Major General Chen Jinrong and Major General Huang Qiusheng. Subordinated to the Political Department was the Political Bureau.


Disciplinary Inspection Commission

Also called the PLASSF Supervisory Commission, the Disciplinary Inspection Commission was led by Lieutenant General Yang Xiaoxiang, Secretary. The role of the Disciplinary Inspection Commission was to conduct surveillance and conduct "disciplinary inspections" on PLASSF members in accordance with Article 68 of the March 2018 "Supervision Law" passed by the 13th National People's Congress. The position of Secretary was originally held by Deputy Political Commissar Lu Jiancheng (20162019). Subordinated to the Disciplinary Inspection Commission was the Disciplinary Inspection Service.


Space Systems Department

After 2015, military units with space missions were transferred to the Space Systems Department. These included space functions like launch centers, satellite control centers, ground tracking stations, mapping and survey units, and former General Armaments Department and General Staff Department research institutes. In 2017, the Equipment and Command Technology Institute was expanded into PLASSF's Space Engineering University. On 19 April 2024, the Space Systems Department was reorganised as the independent People's Liberation Army Aerospace Force.


Network Systems Department

The PLASSF combined PLA cyber units from various PLA bodies into the Network Systems Department which included cyber intelligence, defense, and attack capabilities, including those previously belonging to the Third and Fourth Departments of the PLA. As of 2018 it was headed by Lieutenant General Zheng Junjie, with Lieutenant General Chai Shaoling as political commissar, both of whom were also serving members of the 13th National People's Congress. * Unit 61398 (中國人民解放軍61398部隊) / " APT 1": Stationed in the Pudong District of
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
, Unit 61398 is rumored to be a secret military hacker unit within the Second Bureau of the CMC Political Department. Though it is recognized by the U.S. Government, its existence has been repeatedly denied by the Chinese Government. * Unit 61486 (中國人民解放軍61486部隊) / "Putter Panda": Unit 61486 was the designation for the Twelfth Bureau of the CMC Political Department that was caught committing cyber espionage on American, European, and Japanese aerospace companies with the intention to steal secrets. *Unit 61726 (中國人民解放軍61726部隊) / "Sixth Bureau" (中國人民解放軍總參謀部第三部第六局的代號): Stationed in the
Wuchang District Wuchang is one of 13 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Wuhan, the capital of Hubei Province, China. It is the oldest of the three cities that merged into modern-day Wuhan, and stood on the right (southeastern) bank of the Yan ...
of
Wuhan Wuhan; is the capital of Hubei, China. With a population of over eleven million, it is the most populous city in Hubei and the List of cities in China by population, eighth-most-populous city in China. It is also one of the nine National cent ...
in the Hubei Province, is a "hacker" force dedicated to cyberwarfare specifically targeting
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
. They are directly subordinate to both the sixth bureau of the CMC Political Work Department and the SSF Network Systems Department. They originated as Unit 57316 stationed in
Jingmen Jingmen ( zh, t=, s=, w=Ching1mên2, p=Jīngmén) is a prefecture-level city in central Hubei province, People's Republic of China. Jingmen is within an area where cotton and oil crops are planted. The population of the prefecture is 2,873,687 (2 ...
before transferring their headquarters to
Wuhan Wuhan; is the capital of Hubei, China. With a population of over eleven million, it is the most populous city in Hubei and the List of cities in China by population, eighth-most-populous city in China. It is also one of the nine National cent ...
sometime in the early 2000s. The Sixth Bureau has offices all over Central China, including: Xiamen City in Fujian Province, Ziling Village of Jingmen City and Xiangyang City in Hubei Province, Nanchang City and the Xiaobu Township in Ningdu County of Ganzhou in Jiangxi Province, and Panlong District of Kunming City in Yunnan Province. It is suspected that the Nanchang detachment is a training detachment. The sixth bureau is also suspected to be embedded in the National Cyber Security College of Wuhan University and its associated research centers and laboratories. *Unit 61786 (中国人民解放军61786部队) / "Eighth Bureau" (八局): Stationed at the foot of the Yan Mountain range, this is an information technology research institute responsible for intercepting communications from
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
and
Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...
. In 2011, it was commended as the most talented development unit in the PLA. *NSD 56th Research Institute (第56研究所) / Jiangnan Institute of Computing Technology (江南计算技术研究所): Stationed in Wuxi City in the
Jiangsu Province Jiangsu is a coastal province in East China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its capital in Nanjing. Jiangsu is the third smallest, but the fifth most populous, with a population of 84. ...
. Founded in June 1951, it was the first computer science and engineering research institute for the PLA. They also conduct research on network systems and communications, information assurance and cybersecurity. This is the home to China's first supercomputer, its first GHz computer, and its first 100 GHz computer. By the 2010s, the institute became the computing powerhouse of the PLA, with automated PCB production lines, CAD software development, a research library and full scale living facilities. As of 2016 the institute employs more than 200 Senior Engineers along with graduate and doctoral students from all over China. *NSD 58th Research Institute (中国人民解放军战略支援部队第五十八研究所) - stationed in Beijing. *PLA 316th Hospital (中国人民解放军第三一六医院) - stationed in Beijing. List of military bases under the NSD: * Notional Base 31,
Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...
* Notional Base 32,
Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
* Notional Base 33,
Chengdu Chengdu; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, previously Romanization of Chinese, romanized as Chengtu. is the capital city of the Chinese province of Sichuan. With a ...
* Notional Base 34,
Shenyang Shenyang,; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly known as Fengtian formerly known by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a sub-provincial city in China and the list of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Liaonin ...
* Notional Base 36,
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
* Notional Base 38,
Kaifeng Kaifeng ( zh, s=开封, p=Kāifēng) is a prefecture-level city in east-Zhongyuan, central Henan province, China. It is one of the Historical capitals of China, Eight Ancient Capitals of China, having been the capital eight times in history, and ...
On 19 April 2024, the Network Systems Department was reorganised as the independent People's Liberation Army Information Support Force.


Directly subordinate units

* SSF Electronic Countermeasures Brigade (电子对抗旅)Little is known about this unit. * PLA Strategic Support Force Special Medical Center (中国人民解放军战略支援部队特色医学中心) : Stationed at No. 9 Anxiang Beili, Deshengmen Wai, Chaoyang District of Beijing, it was founded in 1971 as the 514th Hospital of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense. In 1997, it became the General Hospital of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense. In March 1999, it was redesignated as the 306th PLA Hospital. After the 2015 reforms, the Strategic Support Force assumed authority over this hospital. The hospital Dean is Major General Gu Jianwen and its Political Commissar is Major General Zhang Yucai. * Unit 61716 - People's Liberation Army Base 311 (中国人民解放军三一一基地)Stationed at No. 15 Yuandang Street, Baima North Road in the Gulou District of Fuzhou in the Fujian Province, the Trinity Base was founded in 2005 under the control of the PLA Political Department to conduct " three warfares" operations against
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
. The "three warfares" are "Public Opinion Warfare, Psychological Warfare, and Legal Warfare." In 2011, the base was designated as the focal point of all psychological warfare efforts against Taiwan, including assisting in broadcasting propaganda programs thru the Chinese radio stations like Huayi Broadcasting (中国华艺广播公司) and Voice of the Strait. The base itself is also on
social media Social media are interactive technologies that facilitate the Content creation, creation, information exchange, sharing and news aggregator, aggregation of Content (media), content (such as ideas, interests, and other forms of expression) amongs ...
. In 2016, PLASSF assumed control of the base. The base is under the direction of Political Commissar, Major General Mei Huabo.


PLASSF universities

* PLASSF Aerospace Engineering University: Located in Beijing, under the leadership and management of the Space Systems Department, the university was founded in June 1978 as a "Cadre School" under the National Defense Science and Technology Commission. In 1982, the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense assumed authority over the school, and, in 1986, upgraded the school to Command and Technology College. In 1999, the PLA General Armaments department assumed authority and renamed the school to Chinese PLA Equipment Command and Technology Academy. It remained this way until 2011, when the name was shortened to Equipment Academy of the Chinese People's Liberation Army. In 2016, as part of the military reforms, the academy was transferred to the Training Management Division of the Central Military Commission, where it was rebuilt into the Aerospace Engineering University under the Strategic Support Force. Today, the university has more than 20 undergraduate majors, 12 graduate programs, 5 doctoral programs, and 3 post-doctoral research stations. The Dean is Major General Zhou Zhixin and the Political Commissar is Major General Ji Duo. * PLASSF Information Engineering University: Located in the cities of
Zhengzhou Zhengzhou is the capital of Henan, China. Located in northern Henan, it is one of the nine National central city, national central cities in China, and serves as the political, economic, technological, and educational center of the province. Th ...
and
Luoyang Luoyang ( zh, s=洛阳, t=洛陽, p=Luòyáng) is a city located in the confluence area of the Luo River and the Yellow River in the west of Henan province, China. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zheng ...
in
Henan Province Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Luo ...
, under the leadership and management of the Network Systems Department, the school was founded in October 1971 by the 5th Radio Engineering Brigade of the PLA 1st Foreign Language School into the Chinese PLA Institute of Engineering and Technology in Zhangzhou. In January 1981, the Chinese PLA Luoyang University of Foreign Languages Department of Applied Mathematics and Department of Information Processing were transferred to the Institute of Engineering and Technology. In July 1986, the name was change to the Chinese PLA Information Engineering Institute. In June 1991, CPC General Secretary
Jiang Zemin Jiang Zemin (17 August 1926 – 30 November 2022) was a Chinese politician who served as General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1989 to 2002, as Chairman of the Central Mil ...
wrote the following inscription for the school: "Promote the school spirit of strict diligence, unity and dedication, and establish a distinctive and high-level key science and engineering military academy." In 1995, it was identified by the Central Military Commission as one of the 17 key construction academies of the PLA. The following institutes are subordinate to IEU: ** S&T Research Department (科研部) ** Training Department (训练部) ** Command Information Systems Academy (指挥信息系统学院) ** Electronic Technology Academy (电子技术学院) ** Encryption Engineering Academy (密码工程学院) ** Foreign Language Academy (外国语学院) in
Luoyang Luoyang ( zh, s=洛阳, t=洛陽, p=Luòyáng) is a city located in the confluence area of the Luo River and the Yellow River in the west of Henan province, China. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zheng ...
** Geospatial Information Academy (地理空间信息学院) ** Cyberspace Security Academy (网络空间安全学院) ** Navigation and Aerospace Target Engineering Academy (导航与空天目标工程学院) ** Command Officer Basic Education Academy (指挥军官基础教育学院) ** Blockchain Academy (区块链研究院; located in
Shenzhen Shenzhen is a prefecture-level city in the province of Guangdong, China. A Special economic zones of China, special economic zone, it is located on the east bank of the Pearl River (China), Pearl River estuary on the central coast of Guangdong ...
) As for the Beijing Aerospace Flight Control Center, they are tasked with conducting launch monitoring, tracking and measurement, as well as launch recovery.


=Unit 63790 - 27th Experimental Training Base /

Xichang Satellite Launch Center The Xichang Satellite Launch Center (XSLC), also known as the Xichang Space Center, is a spaceport in China. It is located in (), Mianning county, approximately northwest of Xichang, Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan. It is op ...

= Headquartered on the Hangtian North Road of Xichang City in the
Sichuan Province Sichuan is a Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capita ...
. It is also home to the Wenchang Aerospace Launch Site.


=Unit 63880 - 33rd Experimental Training Base / Luoyang Electronic Equipment Test Center

= Stationed at
Luoyang Luoyang ( zh, s=洛阳, t=洛陽, p=Luòyáng) is a city located in the confluence area of the Luo River and the Yellow River in the west of Henan province, China. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zheng ...
in the
Henan Province Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Luo ...
, Base 33 serves as the metrology and instrument measurement center. They also conduct Astronomical mapping and surveying. This base is the most restricted bases in China and was off limits to foreigners until the 1980s during the decommission of various military installations. However, it is still in use and under the control of the CMC Equipment Development Department. * China Aerodynamics Research and Development Center (29th Testing and Training Base) * Space Telemetry, Tracking, and Control * Beijing Aerospace Flight Control Center * Telemetry, Tracking, and Control Stations * Aerospace Reconnaissance Bureau * Satellite Main Station * Aerospace Research and Development Center * Project Design Research Center * Astronaut Corps


Ranks


Officers


Enlisted


In popular culture

* The People's Liberation Army Strategic Support Force appears in episode 2x03 of the
Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
comedy series '' Space Force'', titled "The Chinese Delegation". In this episode, it is revealed that the commander of the People's Liberation Army Strategic Support Force in the series' universe is
General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...
Gao Xiaoling (played by Kelvin Han Yee) and that a delegation led by him travels to the United States to discuss a deal with the team led by the series' protagonist, General Mark R. Naird (played by Steve Carell).


Notes


References

{{Politics of outer space 5 Military units and formations established in 2015 2015 establishments in China Chinese intelligence agencies Space units and formations Military units and formations disestablished in 2024