Dragon’s Mind: The Chinese

Strategic View continues...

The pragmatic Chinese mind realized that action is indeed important. Thus, while Chinese intellectualism was contemptuous of the martial sciences and arts, it at the same recognized their necessity

and importance in the conduct of actions between states, and also in

the administration of the state. In this respect Chinese intellectualism

took care to study not only the theory, but also the practice, of military

strategy and tactics.

As a result, a whole body of strategic and tactical military literature was built up over the centuries, with examples drawn

from Chinese military history over the ages. In this respect they differed

significantly from the development of Indian intellectualism. The result

of this intellectual neglect of the strategic and the martial in Indian

thought has become manifest in its history of defeats at the hands of

outsiders. Indians have become good at conceptualization, but are poor

at implementation in the military sphere.

Examples abound, and the well-documented cases of development or non-development of the Arjun Main Battle Tank or the Light Combat Aircraft are contemporary cases in point. As far as the higher organization of war and the military organization for battle, as well as the actual generalship is concerned,

the example of the preparations for, and the conduct of the 1962 war against China have just been looked at.

The Chinese Communist Empire started with a strong anti intellectual bias, and a military action-oriented agenda, but even then the politico-military leaders from Mao Zedong downwards were well￾versed in Chinese strategic military thought, for example the writings of

Sun Tzu.

The PLA today is not a rustic peasant army of indoctrinated illiterates, and it carefully

nurtures intellectualism to enhance its operational effectiveness. In

addition to high-quality institutes of its own, it sends its best and brightest to top universities both within and outside China. In China today military intellectualism is of a very high order, and it looks both

forwards and back, to modern high-technology and to ancient Chinese

strategic thought.

To be continued.......