ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a definitive account of what at this point remains an emerging issue as to provide a framework for understanding the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) likely response to threats to the integrity of China’s defense–industrial base and to provide an indication of the prospects for its industrial agenda. China’s industrial transformation was launched by the economic reform process announced at the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Chinese Communist Party Central Committee in December 1978. The industrial sector was an important focus of attention from an early point in the Reform Era that began at that point, with structural reforms considered crucial to efforts to address shortcomings in industrial efficiency and the pace of innovation. Security considerations have ensured that the process of transformation has followed a distinct course where the defense–industrial sector is concerned.
