A Chinese military expert has refuted recent reports that the People's Liberation Army has established a new aerospace branch focused on military operations in space, reports Duowei News, a US-based Chinese political news website.
Last month, prominent Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun said that the new "Aerospace Force" will be the fifth service branch under the PLA along with its Ground Force, Navy, Air Force and Second Artillery Corps, adding that it will also lead to the creation of an Aerospace Office under the Central Military Commission. Notably, the original article has since been deleted, while the Pentagon refused to comment on the report.
Then on Wednesday, Tokyo-based political news website The Diplomat said while it cannot confirm the validity of the Yomiuri Shimbun report, the claim seems "plausible on the face of it" because Chinese president and Central Military Commission chairperson Xi Jinping had called for the creation of a "new type of combat unit" and urged PLA officers to "to speed up air and space integration and sharpen their offensive and defensive capabilities" during a visit to an air force base in April.
Read the full story at Want China Times