School of Media and Communication

Phil Taylor's papers

BACK TO : INFORMATION WARFARE (IW) & INFORMATION OPERATIONS (IO) - see also PSYOPS

Chinese Information Warfare by Toshi Yoshihara


http://www.carlisle.army.mil/ssi/pubs/2001/chininfo/chininfo.htm
SUMMARY

The author explores what he perceives to be China s pursuit of information warfare (IW) as a method of fighting
asymmetric warfare against the United States. He believes the Chinese are seeking ways to adapt IW to their
own style of warfare. Paradoxically, he observes that the Chinese have not gleaned their intelligence through
espionage, but through careful scrutiny of U.S. IW in practice. The author examines those aspects of
IW--PSYOPS, Denial, and Deception--that China believes provides the greatest prospects for victory in a
conflict. Not surprisingly, Sun Tzu is interwoven into this emerging theory. Targeting the enemy s nervous
system at all levels, that is, his ability to gather and assess information and then transmit orders, provides
significant advantages in the prosecution of a campaign. He concludes that the extent of Chinese advances or
intent regarding IW is difficult to ascertain given its closed society. Chinese IW may still be nascent, but the
menacing intent is there and only vigilance will protect the United States.




EXHIBITS
chininfo.pdf A paper brought to us by the US Army War College

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