The Chinese embassy in Syria denies that Chinese soldiers fought alongside the Syrian Arab Army in a military operation to retake the rebel-held city of Idlib.
Syrian state-run media two weeks ago reported that "China sent military forces to participate in Syrian government's military operation during the Battle of Idlib."
A statement in Chinese on the embassy's website on Aug 9 denied these reports. It said China has never sent any military force in any military operation led by the Syrian government. It also said China firmly supports the peaceful political settlement of the Syrian crisis, and Syria in its struggle against terrorism.
The embassy said Syrian newspaper Al-Watan "misinterpreted" quotes from Chinese Ambassador Qi Qianjin and Military Attaché Wang Ruizheng about the military operation.
Cooperation between the Syrian and Chinese militaries are reportedly in progress. Wang was quoted as saying that China and its military want to develop its relations with the Syrian army. He added that participating in the Idlib operation requires a political decision from the communist leadership in Beijing.
Al-Watan claims the People's Liberation Army (PLA) is willing to participate in some way alongside the Syrian Army, and that China continues to monitor the civil war that began in March 2011. The Syrian government of dictator Bashar al-Assad currently controls some 60 percent of Syrian territory while U.S.-backed rebels control 28 percent.
China and Syria first began discussions involving the training of Syrian Army personnel by Chinese military advisers in mid-2016. A top Syrian Army officer at the time revealed China will provide aid and enhanced military training to the Syrian Army.
Chinese military pundits believe there are a number of reasons Beijing wants to be involved in the Syrian Civil War. One is that president Xi Jinping wants the People's Liberation Army Ground Force (PLAGF) to experience combat first-hand as part of his campaign to modernize the PLAGF.
A second is to destroy Chinese Uyghur jihadists in Syria who will return to China with the end of the Syrian Civil War. A third reason is China's desire to receive more lucrative reconstruction contracts from Syria. Russian and Iranian firms are getting most of these contracts.
Pundits say the PLAGF needs to develop and deepen its ability to engage in actual combat. Drills won't be enough for the PLAGF to achieve the combat quality needed to fully implement Xi's military modernization campaign. Only real combat can do this.
