Military Strategic Guideline for a New Era

Military strategy guides the development and employment of military forces. It is constantly updated and improved in response to the changing realities. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the people's armed forces have pursued a military strategy featuring active defense, which has undergone eight major adjustments, roughly once every eight to ten years. 

Xi Jinping personally presided over the formulation of the military strategic guideline for a new era, which was unveiled in January 2019. The updated military strategy reiterates the principle of self-defense, that is, the use of military force only for defensive purposes. "We will not attack unless we are attacked; if we are attacked, we will certainly counterattack." China's military strategy aims to deter wars in addition to ensuring its ability to win wars. It focuses on a defensive posture complemented by effective offensive capabilities.  

新時代軍事戰略方針

軍事戰略方針是軍事力量建設與運用的總方略，并隨著時代發展充實完善。新中國成立以來，人民軍隊繼承積極防御戰略思想和戰略傳統，先后對軍事戰略方針進行了8次重大調整，平均8—10年調整一次。

習近平親自主持制定的新時代軍事戰略方針，于2019年1月頒布出臺。新時代軍事戰略方針，堅持防御、自衛、后發制人原則，實行積極防御，堅持“人不犯我、我不犯人，人若犯我、我必犯人”，強調遏制戰爭與打贏戰爭相統一，強調戰略上防御與戰役戰斗上進攻相統一。