SOUTHERN THEATER COMMAND
Key Takeaways
- The Southern Theater Command is oriented toward the SCS, Southeast Asia border security, and territorial and maritime disputes.
- The Southern Theater Command is responsible for responding to U.S. freedom of navigation operations in the SCS and can assume command as needed over all CCG and CMM ships conducting operations within the PRC’s claimed “nine-dash line.”
- In 2022, Southern Theater Command units conducted multiple live-fire drills and amphibious training events near PRC-occupied features in the SCS.
The Southern Theater Command covers mainland and maritime Southeast Asia, including the SCS. This geographic area implies that the Southern Theater Command is responsible for securing the SCS, supporting the Eastern Theater Command in any operation against Taiwan, and assuring the security of sea lines of communication (SLOCs) vital to China’s global ambitions in the SCS. The Southern Theater Command is responsible for responding to U.S. freedom of navigation operations in the SCS by regularly tracking and reacting to U.S. ships operating within the China-claimed “nine-dash line.”
The Southern Theater Command is responsible for training, force disposition, and operations in the SCS. The Southern Theater Command also plays a significant role in the PLA’s bilateral and multilateral exercises with countries in Southeast Asia, such as participating in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief exercise with Thailand in 2022.
The PLA Hong Kong and Macao garrisons are subordinate to the Southern Theater Command. In August 2022, the PLA Hong Kong and Macao garrisons conducted an annual rotation of forces. Since 1997, the PLA has rotated forces by land, air, and sea from Shenzhen at night, nominally as part of the usual annual rotation. Since the 2019 pro-democracy protests, China maintains a rotational deployment of PAP forces in Hong Kong. The PAP and PLA units continued to publicly highlight their anti-riot, counterterrorism, and disaster prevention training.
All of the PLA’s 24 Su-35s purchased from Russia are assigned to the Southern Theater Command Air Force and have flown patrols in the SCS and into the Western Pacific. The Southern Theater Command was also the first command to receive the PLAN’s H-6J maritime strike bombers. In December 2019, the PRC commissioned its first-domestically produced aircraft carrier, Shandong into service at Yulin Naval Base in the Southern Theater Command. In April, the Shandong conducted its first training exercise in the Philippine Sea with J-15 aircraft entering Taiwan’s air defense identification zone for the first time, demonstrating the PLA’s increased capabilities further from China’s borders.
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OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE
Annual Report to Congress: Military and Security Developments Involving the People's Republic of China
