Inside China’s plans for ‘national total war,’ according to the Pentagon

Kyle Gunn

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China’s military strategy for future conflicts has evolved into “national total war,” a whole-of-nation mobilization effort aimed squarely at overcoming “the strong enemy” it sees in the United States. That’s the conclusion of a recent Pentagon report to Congress on China’s military developments as the country’s leaders eye Taiwan and other regional ambitions.Pentagon planners say the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leaders envision future conflict not simply as a clash of armies and navies, but as a “clash of national systems” that integrates civilian and military power.

The report’s point is that China’s leadership and the PLA aren’t preparing for a future conflict that looks like a clean, military-only fight. The Pentagon argues that the PLA envisions its future “great power conflict” with the U.S. as a top-to-bottom fight using all of Chinese society, with traditional military combat backed by industrial and economic pressure, technology denial, and widespread social control.