Chinese Political Warfare: A Strategic Tautology?

Pieter Zhao's essay argues that political warfare, specifically China's "Three Warfares" concept, is a central element of Chinese strategic thinking and translates directly into China's wider grand strategy. The essay traces this view to Sun Tzu, noting that the PLA's Three Warfares materials cite him thirty times, and to Mao Zedong's insistence that the Red Army's task is not merely to fight. It uses the South China Sea dispute as its case study of this integrated effort. The excerpt cuts off before that analysis begins.