Central Theater Command

Central Theater Command
Central Theater Command
Simplified Chinese	中部战区
Traditional Chinese	中部戰區
Hanyu Pinyin
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin	Zhōngbù Zhànqū

Central Theater Command
Central Theater Command
中部战区
Founded	1 February 2016; 8 years ago
Country	People's Republic of China
Allegiance	Chinese Communist Party
Type	Theater Command
Role	Command and control
Size	300,000
Part of	Central Military Commission; People's Liberation Army
Headquarters	Beijing
Motto(s)	听党指挥、能打胜仗、作风优良
Website	Official website
Commanders
Commander	General Huang Ming
Political Commissar	General Xu Deqing
Chief of Staff	General Jia Jiancheng
Insignia
Sleeve insignia

The Central Theater Command is one of the five theater commands of the People's Liberation Army of China,^[1] and was founded on 1 February 2016.^[2] Its predecessors were the Beijing Military Region and Jinan Military Region.^[3]

The International Institute for Strategic Studies attributes to the command of 300,000 personnel, consisting of three group armies 81st Group Army, 82nd Group Army, 83rd Group Army (Formerly 27th Group Army, 38th Army, and the 65th Army), two armoured divisions, one mechanised infantry division, five motorised divisions, one artillery division, three armoured, seven motorised infantry, four artillery, a total of five various anti-aircraft brigades, and one anti-tank regiment.^[4] The command is also augmented by the PLA Beijing Garrison, which consists of the 1st Guard and the 3rd Guard Divisions, and the Beijing Garrison Honor Guard Battalion and Color Guard Company, both of them are charged with public duties, and is also home to the PLA Navy (PLAN) North Sea Fleet and the PLA Air Force (PLAAF) 10th Air Force Corps.

In addition to guarding the capital, the CTC is the main military theater command in charge of training key personnel for leadership positions through the numerous military academies in the region.^{[citation needed]}

Area of responsibility

The Central Theater Command's area of responsibility (AOR) consists of the previous Beijing Military Region, including the capital Beijing and the neighboring provinces and directly governed municipalities of Tianjin, Hebei, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Henan and Hubei.^[5]

The command's primary responsibility is the defense of the nation's capital, Beijing, and it serves as the national strategic military reserve.^[6]

Organizational Structure

PLA Ground Forces

Regiments/Units

PLA Beijing Garrison

1st Guard Division, located in Haidian, Beijing
- 3rd Guards Regiment (Heavy Infantry)
- 4th Guards Regiment (Light Quick reaction force)
- 5th Guards Regiment (Light Quick reaction force)
- Central Guard Regiment
- Honor Guard Battalion
3rd Guard Division, located in Tongzhou, Beijing
- 11th Guards Regiment (showcase unit)
- 13th Guards Regiment (special security unit)
- Armored Regiment
- Artillery Regiment
- Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment
- Support Battalion
17th Guard Regiment
Reserve Unit
Reserve Officer Training Corps
Reserve Artillery Division, located in Huairou, Beijing
Reserve Chemical Defense Regiment, located in Xicheng, Beijing

PLA Air Forces

List of leaders

Commanders

English name	Chinese name	Took office	Left office
Han Weiguo	韩卫国	February 2016	August 2017
Yi Xiaoguang	乙晓光	August 2017	August 2021
Lin Xiangyang	林向阳	August 2021	January 2022
Wu Yanan	吴亚男	January 2022	January 2023
Huang Ming	黄铭	January 2023	Incumbent

Political commissars

English name	Chinese name	Took office	Left office
Yin Fanglong	殷方龙	February 2016	December 2018
Zhu Shengling	朱生岭	March 2019	January 2022
Xu Deqing	徐德清	January 2022	Incumbent

References

^ Zhen, Liu (January 4, 2018). "Xi Jinping calls for battle readiness as troops stage massive winter drills across China". South China Morning Post. Retrieved January 4, 2018. Dressed in a winter camouflage uniform and flanked by the other members of the supreme Central Military Commission, Xi issued the call from a military base in the Central Theatre Command, one of the country's five military zones, as troops in 4,000 sites across the country took part in simultaneous drills in the armed forces' annual new year exercises on Wednesday.
^ "President Xi announces establishment of five PLA theater commands". Ministry of National Defense of the People's Republic of China. 1 February 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2019. A grand inauguration ceremony was held to mark the founding of the five theater commands of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) in Beijing on Feb. 1, 2016....and Han Weiguo and Yin Fanglong, commander and political commissar of the Central Theater Command....
^ "原七大军区调整为五大战区北京湖北等隶属中部战区". hb.sina.com.cn. Retrieved 2022-08-02.
^ International Institute for Strategic Studies, The Military Balance 2006
^ Teo, Cheng Wee (3 Feb 2016). "Military rezoning shows China's focus is on winning wars". The Straits Times. Singapore Press Holdings. Retrieved 14 June 2019. [see map graphic for list of provinces]
^ Army Techniques Publication (ATP) 7-100.3 Chinese Tactics. Washington, D.C.: Headquarters, Department of the Army (United States). 2021. p. 36. ISBN 9798457607118.

[1] Zhen, Liu (January 4, 2018). "Xi Jinping calls for battle readiness as troops stage massive winter drills across China". South China Morning Post. Retrieved January 4, 2018. Dressed in a winter camouflage uniform and flanked by the other members of the supreme Central Military Commission, Xi issued the call from a military base in the Central Theatre Command, one of the country's five military zones, as troops in 4,000 sites across the country took part in simultaneous drills in the armed forces' annual new year exercises on Wednesday.

[mod-prc-announcement-2] "President Xi announces establishment of five PLA theater commands". Ministry of National Defense of the People's Republic of China. 1 February 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2019. A grand inauguration ceremony was held to mark the founding of the five theater commands of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) in Beijing on Feb. 1, 2016....and Han Weiguo and Yin Fanglong, commander and political commissar of the Central Theater Command....

[3] "原七大军区调整为五大战区北京湖北等隶属中部战区". hb.sina.com.cn. Retrieved 2022-08-02.

[4] International Institute for Strategic Studies, The Military Balance 2006

[teo-st-5] Teo, Cheng Wee (3 Feb 2016). "Military rezoning shows China's focus is on winning wars". The Straits Times. Singapore Press Holdings. Retrieved 14 June 2019. [see map graphic for list of provinces]

[6] Army Techniques Publication (ATP) 7-100.3 Chinese Tactics. Washington, D.C.: Headquarters, Department of the Army (United States). 2021. p. 36. ISBN 9798457607118.

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Central Theater Command

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