Military-civil fusion
Military-civil fusion (, MCF) or civil-military fusion is a Chinese reform strategy aiming to deregulate defense industry in China by encouraging private sector to invest, develop, and manufacture military equipment. The reform aims to easing the administrative burden on private defense companies, and stimulating greater competition in China's defense industry. Background. Chinese defense industry features serval major constraints and weaknesses. The institutional foundations of China's weapon development and research are copied from the Soviet Union, where state-owned factories and companies develop and manufacture equipment based on a top-down command approach. Other major  weaknesses include monopoly in the defense industry held by state-owned companies, bureaucratic inefficacy, corruption, lack of innovation, outdated pricing and contracting process. Chinese state-owned defense corporations are uncoordinated and inefficient, inclined toward to the preservation of their state-sanctioned monopoly, exploiting their gain in a privileged position due to obstruction in fair competition with private enterprises. In 2010, Chinese researchers estimated that less than one percent of the Chinese high-tech enterprises were involved in defense-related activity. Chinese policymaker preferred an American-style defense industry, where allocation of resource is determined by commercial collaboration and government procurement  process. History. This "military-civil fusion" strategy is not a new concept nor it is a specific policy under the Xi Jinping Administration. The term "military-civil fusion" first emerged in the late 1990s. Hu Jintao, then-vice chairman of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Military Commission, uses the term to describe the coordination between civic and military sectors. The concept of "military-civil fusion" dates back to Mao Zedong and the founding of the People's Republic of China. However, defense analyst Richard Bitzinger notes that military-civil fusion efforts under Xi Jinping are more ambitious than those  of his predecessors. During 1990s and 2000s, Chinese government attempted multiples forms of MCF implementation with mixed results. MCF was first used in 1980s primarily for converting military factories over to civilian production under the backdrop of the economic reform, which failed to bring innovative commercial technologies into the military sector. People's Liberation Army continue to acquire defense product through typical channels of state-owned corporations, while private companies only had limited contribution and involvement. Corruption and graft also contributed to the continuous preference toward state-owned companies, even when alternative options existed. Certain areas of development in China 's military-industrial complex did see some benefits from the military-civilian integration, particularly for the shipbuilding, information technology, and aerospace industry. Analysts Elsa B. Kania and Lorand Laskai noted Xi Jinping's initiative may lead to a breakthrough in efficiency and innovations, however, the initiative indicates China's attempt to overcome military procurement and research and development (R&D) deficiencies instead of a sign of strength. Richard A. Bitzinger believes MCF would requires significant effort and resources to implement successfully, given the current legal, regulatory, and cultural hurdles that exist in the Chinese government. Nevertheless, analyst Christian Brose argues that  Chinese military capabilities have improved significantly in the 2010s due to relative success in fusing the defense and civilian sector for military development and production. General policies. MCF is also an evolving concept, with a common theme focusing on civil-military collaboration. MCF is also noted to promote the use of dual-use technology and two-way transfer, in which defense companies, universities, and research institutions can collaborate and share technologies between military and civilian sectors. The term "civil-military integration" (CMI) got gradually replaced by the term "military-civil fusion" under Xi Jinping's administration, possibly inkling the latter  has increased level of coordination between military and civilian insitituions or a more balanced attention between military and civilian developments. The MCF influences investment decisions, talent recruitment, and research and development (R&D) across multiple fields. In January 2017, Xi Jinping and his administration created a Central Military-Civil Fusion Development Committee (CMCFDC), which is responsible for the planning and implementation of the MCF in China. Although United States politicians have claimed the existence of legal obligation mandating that Chinese companies must participate in military-civil fusion as per government request, however as of 2020, no legal obligation or constitutional requirement  for MCF exists in China. There's also no statute or law mandating compulsory participation for companies to MCF. Emily Weinstein noted that the Chinese government has studied the U.S. military-civil framework, with research papers examining the successes and drawbacks of its implementation in the United States, such as Pentagon’s Defense Innovation Unit, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). China recognized the technological superiority the U.S. has achieved through collaboration between the U.S. government institutions and leading technologies companies in the U.S., such as the case of SpaceX, Amazon, Microsoft, and Google. Therefore, China attempted to replicate and  modified the framework as per demotic needs. The integration approaches are very similar to that of the United States. Weinstein believes Chinese government can demand information and assistance from companies with more hardline approach than that of the United States. In 2021, China has implemented new Five-Year Plan to set overall guidance for policies and national development goals through 2025. Although the guidance does not reference military-civil fusion, the policy and its implications are relevant. The document called for further coordination in the development of critical and emergent technologies, which is in-line with the goal of military -civil fusion. Analyst noted that military-civil fusion, if get implemented successfully, would bring several benefits to the Chinese defense industry, such as increasing innovations within defense products, narrowing technology gap between China and the United States, economical growth for civilian sector that particulates in MCF business and research. Response. Several U.S. government agencies have deployed their own definitions of military-civil fusion. In May 2020, the Trump administration issued a presidential proclamation banning Chinese students and researchers from coming to the United States based on their perceived relationship with military-civil fusion. The executive order describes military-civil fusion  as a mean to "acquire and divert foreign technologies". Analyst noted the definition is largely divorced from the purpose and objective of military-civil fusion, instead, it describes China's general issues on technology transfer. Multiple analysts and think tanks have warned that United States government and policiesmakers have failed to understand the objectives, progress, and complexities of military-civil fusion. The confusion and misunderstanding would lead to ineffective, inappropriate response and counter-policy. Analysts argues that negative concentration and critiques from the U.S. government and policymakers regarding MCF could lead to accusation of hypocrisy from the Chinese government, due  to the obvious parallels between military-civil fusion and American defense innovation ecosystem. Analysts argue that U.S. policymakers should take an accurate, targeted solution that appreciates the complexities of military-civil fusion strategy. Targeting military-civil fusion in board term could lead to talent loss and damage America's technological competitiveness as Chinese researchers and scholars have made significant contributions to American economy and society.