China And Hybrid Warfare

Image Credit: Chinese soldiers image via Hung Chung Chih / Shutterstock.com

Benjamin David Baker, The Diplomat: Hybrid Warfare With Chinese Characteristics

From Sun Tzu to Xi Jinping: Russia isn’t the only one who knows hybrid warfare.

The Ukraine Crisis has caused a renewed interest in the concept known as hybrid warfare (HW). There has been much speculation around hybrid warfare, and the concept has so far been notoriously hard to define. The description that seems to be most commonly accepted is that HW is a type of warfare which entails the use of a combination of different types of warfare by an adversary. This primarily entails employing a mixture of conventional and irregular troops in order for a specific actor to achieve its political goals. Furthermore, it also includes the widespread use of intelligence, propaganda and diplomatic means in order to persuade the adversary to surrender. The goal of an actor employing hybrid warfare is not merely the control of a piece of territory, nor the destruction of an opponent’s military force. According to Col. John J. McCuen:

WNU Editor: The Chinese are employing these tactics in securing their maritime territorial ambitions in the South China Sea ... albeit with a naval focus.