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

As such, they present outsiders an opportunity to better
understand both China’s military capabilities as
well as its intentions.
Beijing appears to be willing to discuss the possibility
of conducting combined ground humanitarian
or disaster relief exercises with U.S. forces (Army or
Marines). It seems feasible that American military
planners and operators could construct a worthwhile
training event within the parameters set by the National
Defense Authorization Act. There is no doubt
the militaries of both countries will be involved in
humanitarian or disaster relief operations in the future,
possibly in third countries in adjacent areas at
the same time. Prior practice on the training field may
permit greater efficiencies in getting that future mission
accomplished while contributing to mutual understanding
and trust between the nations.
ENDNOTES - CHAPTER 8
1. In U.S. military terminology “combined exercises” involve
forces from two or more countries. They may or may not be “joint
exercises,” involving two or more services, such as Army and Air
Force. In most cases, the Chinese use only the term “joint” (lianhe,
联合) for both types of exercises the United States defines as
“combined” or “joint.” Most Chinese lists of “joint exercises” with
foreign forces include only PLA exercises. Adding PAP exercises
to the list, as is done in this chapter, significantly increases the
number of exercises. Since 2002, the Chinese Defense White Papers
have listed combined exercises but have not provided much detail,
if any, about their content. Chinese media sources (newspapers,
internet, and television) have provided increasingly more
detailed reports of many of these exercises. Frequently, official
sources like PLA Daily or Xinhua will compile numerous exercise
reports and photos on dedicated webpages. However, no Chinese
source available has attempted a comprehensive analysis of this
series of exercises, and no Chinese source includes every exercise
described in this chapter.
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