Saadet Gokce
31 July 2026•Update: 31 July 2026
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday called for stronger political leadership and greater innovation-driven development to advance the modernization of China’s national defense and armed forces.
Xi made the remarks during a group study session of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, according to state-run Xinhua news agency.
The meeting came ahead of the 99th anniversary of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) on Saturday.
Xi urged efforts to achieve the goals set for the PLA’s centenary in 2027 and make “decisive progress” toward essentially modernizing national defense and the armed forces.
“This will provide strong strategic support for advancing the cause of building a great country and achieving national rejuvenation on all fronts through Chinese modernization,” he said.
Xi also stressed the need to deepen the anti-corruption campaign, strengthen oversight of major projects and ensure that all military construction projects meet standards for quality, capability and integrity.
“The barrel of the gun must always obey the party’s command,” Xi said, emphasizing the need for the CPC to maintain leadership over the military.
He said improving combat effectiveness was the fundamental objective and standard of high-quality modernization of national defense and the armed forces.
Xi also called for greater military use of unmanned and intelligent technologies, further development and application of networked information systems, and the gradual establishment of an intelligent military system.
