How China Fights: A History of the People's Liberation Army

Focusing on strategy, objectives, leadership, tactics, technology, logistics, and other aspects of PLA military operations from the 1920s to 2022, Li gives an account of the PLA’s operations in the Korean War, the French War in Vietnam, the Taiwan Straits conflicts (1954 and 1958), the Sino-Indian border War, the Sino-Soviet border clashes, the American War in Vietnam, and the Sino-Vietnamese War. He also describes more recent military developments in the South and East China Seas. Along the way, he reveals important changes to China’s military—in strategy and tactics, technological improvements, development of naval and air forces, the atomic weapons program, and PLA involvement in politics. His work makes an essential contribution to our understanding of the PLA’s strategic culture—and of when, why, and how China goes to war.