Rocket Force to protect national interests

At an official ceremony of the People's Liberation Army on Dec 31, top leader Xi Jinping, conferred military flags on the general command of the People's Liberation Army Rocket Force. The Second Artillery Force, founded in 1966 as China's core strategic deterrent force, has been officially renamed and promoted as one of the four army units of the PLA.

"It was mainly for secrecy reasons that China named its first missile force Second Artillery Force in 1966," says Shao Yongling, a professor at the PLA Rocket Force Commanding Academy, which was known as the SAF Commanding Academy. "But the SAF was not very different from other artillery forces of the time. Its shooting range was hundreds of kilometers, and it served as a supporting force of the army ." Moreover, most of the first SAF officers and soldiers were later shifted out of the artillery force.

Of course, it is no longer necessary for China to hide its missile forces under a vague name. So, by giving it a new name and making it a distinct armed unit different from a branch, China is promoting military transparency, Shao says.