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

According to the 1998 Defense White Paper, functional
exchanges include exchanges and cooperation
with foreign militaries in “the fields of scientific research,
academic studies, military education, armed
forces administration, culture, sports, and medical
and hygiene work.” 42 Functional exchanges rarely
receive the sort of high-profile media coverage that
high-level exchanges and ship visits do. As a result of
this dearth of information, the conclusions that can be
drawn about the nature and content of the visits are
limited.
In recent years, China has been sending an increasing
number of military students overseas. In 1999 and
2000, the PLA sent around 200 military personnel to
study abroad. 43 During 2007 and 2008, the PLA sent
over 900 military students to more than 30 countries—
a 450 percent increase in 8 years. 44 As of early January
2007, the PLAAF alone had sent a total of 13 groups of
mid- and senior-level officers to study abroad. In addition,
the PLAAF Command College had received air
force delegations from 43 different countries. 45 Moreover,
20 military educational institutions in China
have established exchange programs with counterpart
institutions in over 20 countries, including the United
States, Russia, Japan, and Pakistan.
Meanwhile, the number of foreign military students
studying in PLA academic institutions is also increasing
rapidly. For example, the following number
of foreign military personnel studied in PLA colleges
and universities from 2003-08:
• 1,245 from 91 countries in 2003-04;
• More than 2,000 from more than 140 countries
in 2005-06; and
• Approximately 4,000 from more than 130 countries
during 2007-08. 46
443