China's People's Liberation Army had announced that it would put the reserve forces under central leadership. (File)
Beijing:
China's reserve military forces will be officially placed under the centralized and unified command of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Central Military Commission (CMC), both headed by President Xi Jinping, from July 1, to ensure the "absolute leadership" of the ruling party ensure. about it and build a world-class army, according to a report.
The reserve forces are currently under the dual leadership of military sectors and local communist party committees and would be brought under the control of the ruling party and the CMC from July 1, the state news agency Xinhua reported.
China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) announced plans in 2017 to reduce the strength of the reserve forces and bring them under central control as part of the military reforms.
Reforms included reducing the size of the military by three lakh forces, reducing the size of the PLA, the world's largest force, to two million employees.
An official announcement on Sunday said reserve forces were "an important part of the PLA, and the adjustment of the leadership structure aims to maintain China's absolute leadership over the army and build a strong military in the new era."
It calls on the responsible military and civilian units to take active and coordinated measures to implement the changes in the management structure.
Since taking power in 2013, 67-year-old Xi Jinping has ordered all PLA ranks to work exclusively under the leadership of the CPC. He is also the general secretary of the CPC.
China observers have described Xi Jinping as the most powerful Chinese leader since Chairman Mao Zedong, especially since he managed to change the constitution to end the two-year presidential border in 2018.
In line with the reform process announced in 2017, the CMC will take over the overall administration of the PLA, the Chinese People's Police and the militia and reserve forces. This meant that all forces would work directly under the central leadership of the President.
The reform included a reduction in ground forces and an increase in the role and scope of the Navy and Air Force as part of China's efforts to expand its global influence.
The structure of the reserve forces will adapt to the information warfare of traditional combat-oriented and mechanized ones, the PLA announced in 2017.
