Prepared by: Ina Stašević, Croatia/European Union
Global events over the past five years have caused fundamental upheaval. The situation has become particularly acute following Russia's aggression against Ukraine. Alongside that war, now in its fifth year, new conflicts have emerged with the potential to spread globally. These include the war between Israel and Palestine and, more recently, the conflict between Israel and Iran, in which the US has become actively involved. Growing global polarization is currently fueling instability and driving massive new financial investments in military development across most nations. These conflicts have revealed a new reality in which military superiority is achieved through technologically advanced systems. Increasing amounts of funding are being allocated to military modernization, with demands reaching as high as 5% of a country's GDP. Even current spending levels exceeding 2% place a significant strain on the economies of NATO member states. Yet, without investing in the development of their own armed forces, no one can guarantee security or territorial integrity.
Populous countries, regardless of social and political order, such as India, China, Russia, Pakistan, the USA, etc., have never neglected the development of their own armed forces, knowing that this is the only guarantee of safe sustainability and that they can impose their will on others if necessary. Alongside them are some smaller countries, such as North Korea, which ensure their integrity by investing enormously in their own military capabilities. As long as the development of an army's human and technological potential is aimed at preserving the integrity of its own state, without pretensions to other people's territory, the situation is not worrisome. Unfortunately, with the development of military capabilities, politicians' aspirations to expand territory and pursue so-called preventive wars have grown. This led to re-militarization and the desire for everyone to arm themselves with the latest modern combat equipment and to train their own potential for defense.
In a country with a population of over a billion, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of China constitutes the nation's armed forces and stands as one of the world's largest military organizations. According to official Chinese sources, its primary mission is to safeguard the state's national sovereignty, territorial integrity, and development interests, while simultaneously maintaining peace and regional and global stability.
As it approaches the 99th anniversary of its founding, the People's Liberation Army is undergoing the most ambitious modernization in its history. With its official budget reaching a record $282 billion, Beijing is shaping the global balance of power in the Indo-Pacific.
The PLA is marking its 99th anniversary. What began on August 1, 1927, as a poorly armed communist guerrilla uprising in Nanchang has evolved into the planet's second-largest military force and a key pillar of China's global ambitions. As the country prepares for its major centenary, the message from Beijing is clear: China no longer seeks merely a large military; it is building a "world-class" force capable of winning the technological warfare of the 21st century.
Official Chinese documents emphasize that the PLA is not focused solely on defending national borders. Its tasks also include providing aid to the population during natural disasters, participating in international United Nations peacekeeping missions, and conducting humanitarian interventions and operations against maritime piracy. China particularly highlights its role as a leading contributor to UN peacekeeping operations as a permanent member of the Security Council. There is no doubt that the People's Liberation Army remains one of modern China's most important symbols and a key element of its political, economic, and technological rise on the global stage. In a country rapidly building its future, the military remains one of the most striking symbols of continuity, discipline, and the ambition to meet the challenges of a new era.
Today, China's military acts as a guarantor of national sovereignty, placing special emphasis on "red lines" such as the status of Taiwan and territorial claims in the South China Sea. Domestically, the military is undergoing restructuring aimed at creating a force with absolute operational effectiveness.
The era when the power of the Chinese military was measured by the number of boots on the ground has long since passed. Over the past two decades, ground forces have been drastically reduced to make way for technology-intensive branches: the navy, the air force, and strategic missile forces.
China's modernization focuses on the technological development of AI-driven warfare. Today, China possesses the world's largest navy by vessel count, rapidly constructing advanced aircraft carriers equipped with electromagnetic catapults. Resources are being redirected toward space systems, cyber warfare, hypersonic weapons, and the integration of artificial intelligence into command structures. Recent successful tests of strategic submarine-launched missiles and the development of reusable space rockets demonstrate that Beijing is technologically on par with the United States.
Achieving these goals requires astronomical funding. China's military budget for the current year has been set at 1.94 trillion yuan (approximately $282 billion), representing a nominal increase of 7% compared to last year. Beijing emphasizes that these allocations are modest, defensive in nature, and fully aligned with economic growth. Despite economic challenges, a slowdown in the real estate market, and a budget deficit, the defense sector remains an absolute priority for the Chinese state treasury.
The upcoming 100th anniversary of the People's Liberation Army has been designated as the primary political deadline by which the military must complete a key phase of modernization and achieve full joint operational capability across all service branches on the modern battlefield. With 99 years of experience, ranging from guerrilla warfare in the mud to satellite-guided hypersonic missiles in space, the Chinese military is no longer merely a regional player. It has become a global force whose decisions on world security cannot be ignored.
The 99th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People's Liberation Army was celebrated on Tuesday, July 21, in Zagreb, the capital of the Republic of Croatia.