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

development for a long time. 138 Moreover, since these
are products arising from the legacy defense industries,
one should expect these advances to continue
with or without CMI.
Rather, the measure of CMI’s success will be in
those areas where leap-ahead and disruptive innovations
are most likely to occur; that is, in C4ISR systems,
advanced electronic components, high-end integrated
circuits, next generation broadband wireless mobile
communications, precision guidance, and its tracking
and targeting assets, situational awareness, connectivity,
digital simulation facilities, etc. 139 Highly representative
of these capabilities, IT and space will be
two of the most decisive sectors. 140 These technologies
may adjust the power balance in a more fundamental
way since, if successful, China would begin to compete
(or close the gap) with the United States where
it is strongest—such as advanced net-centric warfare,
high-speed communication links, and interoperable
data systems. 141 It is in these areas that will make by
far the highest demands in human and monetary resources
as well as industrial capacity, and where the
dynamic and large scale of the civilian sector will be
most critical. 142
Space.
If talent and capital are the primary ingredients to
success, how is the space sector faring? China’s space
industry is operating in a unique environment. First,
the legacy of past policies have left it (China Aerospace
Science and Technology Corporation and China Aerospace
Science and Industry Corporation) dispersed,
bloated, and located in geographically isolated regions.
As a result, the primary strategy of the space industry
is consolidation and concentration of its dual-use as-
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