C3S ISSUE BRIEF XXV: How China Built the Industrial Foundations of Military Power and the Defence Industrial Ecosystem — Lessons for Emerging Defence Powers

By Commander YVV Prasad, IN (Retd.)

Part VI of INDIA- CHINA SERIES

INDIA AND CHINA : Lessons from Four Decades of Scientific, Technological and Industrial Transformation - Reflections on Science, Technology, Industry and National Capability for India's Next Leap: Strategic Insights for India's Future Development.

Image Source: Gen Ai

Abstract

This strategic case study examines how the People's Republic of China systematically built the industrial foundations of its contemporary military power through decades of visionary national planning, institutional reform, technological indigenization, and holistic Military-Civil Fusion. From a position of technological dependence in the mid-20th century, China has forged one of the world's most comprehensive defence industrial ecosystems — encompassing advanced manufacturing, shipbuilding dominance, missile and aerospace capabilities, strategic deterrence, unmanned systems, and emerging domains such as cyber, AI, and multi-domain integration. The analysis highlights the enduring principles of sustained commitment, pragmatic adaptation, ecosystem convergence, and unwavering national execution that enabled this remarkable transformation. Drawing lessons for emerging defence powers, the paper offers indigenous capability perspectives and holistic imperatives for India under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative, emphasising the need for deep industrial depth, cognitive capital development, strategic patience, and whole-of-nation synergy to achieve comprehensive strategic autonomy and long-term military readiness in an evolving global security landscape.

Read the full Issue Brief at this link:

(Commander Prasad YVV, IN (Retd.) is currently the Founder and Managing Director of ‘Prasad Consulting Hyd (India) Pvt Ltd’. The views expressed here are of the author's own and do not reflect the views of C3S.)