China Establishes New Military Academies as Part of Armed Forces Reform

China’s ground forces have established three new military academies as part of a broader reform of the country’s military education system, according to the South China Morning Post.

The new institutions are intended to reflect a fundamentally different approach to training, with an emphasis on the demands of modern warfare.

The three academies include the PLA Ground Forces Academy in Hefei, Anhui Province; the PLA Information Support Forces Engineering University in Wuhan, Hubei Province; and the PLA Joint Logistics Support Forces Engineering University in Chongqing.

The academies are tasked with preparing personnel for newly created branches of the military, including the Information Support Force (ISF) and the Joint Logistics Support Force (JLSF).

Chinese Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Jiang Bin said the academies would admit high school graduates, with detailed admission requirements and selection criteria to be announced soon.

The creation of the institutions is part of a long-term modernization effort launched in 2016, aimed at improving the effectiveness of China’s military and aligning it with the needs of contemporary combat. The reforms are part of the country’s goal to build a “world-class military force” by 2049.

The PLA Ground Forces Academy was formed through the merger of the PLA Army Academy of the Armored Forces and the PLA Army Academy of Artillery and Air Defense. It will train officers for artillery, air defense, and armored units.

The academy has several campuses, with the main facility in Hefei and others in Nanjing, Zhengzhou, and Shenyang. Its faculty includes more than 180 full professors and 300 associate professors.

The other two academies — the Engineering University of the Information Support Forces and the Engineering University of the Joint Logistics Support Forces — are focused on developing technical specialists for emerging military structures.

ISF is responsible for managing networked information systems and supporting command operations, while JLSF handles logistics and supply chain operations during combat missions.

Militarnyi previously reported that China planned to increase its defense budget by 7.2%, bringing total military spending to $245 billion in 2025.

China’s defense spending is already the second highest in the world, after the United States.