Sheng Bin, Chief of the National Defense Mobilization Department of China's Central Military Commission (CMC), said on the closing day of the NPC session on March 15, 2017, that China will reduce its army reserve while increasing reserves for other services.He said the army reserve will be reduced, while the reserves of other military services including the navy, air force and the rocket force will be increased in a bid to keep up with China's military buildup, as the military reform has made headway. He added that the structure of the reserve forces will adapt to information warfare from traditional combat-oriented and mechanized ones. Separately, Major General Chen Zhou of the PLA Academy of Military Science said on March 16, that many officers will retire and be assigned to new positions in this round of military reform.He also said China will step up efforts on the national level to help retired servicemen resettle to civilian life by adopting a series of laws and regulations. Xu Guangyu, a senior adviser at the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association, told the Global Times that China is short on detailed laws or regulations to assist servicemen and servicewomen, so when they return home, they are treated based on the level of development in their respective hometowns. He said retired military personnel can return to civilian life in a more fair and balanced way, which will also encourage those still in service.
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