The PLA at Home and Abroad - Strategic Studies Institute - U.S. Army

International.
Surveying relevant academic and media sources,
as well as interviews with Chinese interlocutors, 141
suggests that foreign responses to the missions were
far more encouraging than many expected. One Chinese
source does see a “China threat theory,” and
questions the need for warships to address the piracy
issue. 142 But the vast majority of assessments are far
more positive. Fudan University scholar Shen Dingli
states that “China’s ‘harmonious diplomacy’ has been
well received by countries in the region.” 143 According
to a mainland-owned Hong Kong newspaper,
“the current expedition by Chinese naval vessels to
Somalia has not stoked the ‘China threat theory’ in the
West; quite the contrary, China is being seen as a ‘responsible
global player’.” 144 Two professors from Lanzhou
University’s Central Asia Studies Institute have
categorized piracy, with terrorism, as collective evils
that a great power like China must oppose. 145
Domestic.
The Chinese public has expressed great pride in
the missions’ success. PLA analysts have seized on
this precedent to call for relevance to other military
operations. Many suggest that such missions should
increase in the future, and that therefore better platform
capabilities, and even improved access to overseas
port facilities, are needed. Major General Peng
Guangqian (Ret.), who played a significant role in
shaping PLA strategy as an adviser to China’s powerful
CMC and Politburo Standing Committee, states
that deploying to Somalia will teach the PLAN how
to interoperate with other navies. 146 Major General
328