Strategic Support Force: China’s mission to win future wars hinges on this shadowy military branch
- The emerging Strategic Support Force is leveraging the civilian sector to expand China’s space, cyber, electromagnetic and psychological warfare capabilities
- SSF is tasked to future-proof PLA with superior intelligence and reinforced joint operations
When Donald Trump’s White House established the US Space Force in 2019 as the sixth branch of the US military, Washington boasted control of “the ultimate high ground”.
But four years before the formal establishment of that military service branch, Beijing had already established a new branch of its military, also aimed at outer space.
The PLA said last week that building “strategic capabilities in emerging areas”, a term coined by President Xi Jinping, will create “asymmetrical” advantages and “hugely” change the military balance between rivals, as the country faces “foreseeable and unforeseeable stormy seas” – a vague reference to more complex geopolitical environments, as well as the risks of armed conflict.
The hi-tech SSF branch, which integrates “strategic functions” across the entire PLA and relies heavily on civilian innovation support such as AI development, is playing an increasingly critical role in the military’s preparations for future “intelligence warfare”, analysts said.
However, the branch’s heavy reliance on high tech could also make it more vulnerable to US restrictions, they said.
Space, cyber and Taiwan
Created in 2015, the SSF oversees two departments: a “space force” and a “cyber force”.
