HEAVY MANDATE

Chinese President Xi Jinping confers the military flag to Wei Fenghe， Commander of the Rocket Force of the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army （PLA）， with Wang Jiasheng （far right）， Political Commissar of the Rocket Force， looking on at a ceremony in Beijing on December 31， 2015.

The General Command of the PLA Army， the PLA Rocket Force and the PLA Strategic Support Force were inaugurated at the event as part of Chinas ongoing military reform.

The PLA Rocket Force， renamed from the PLA Second Artillery Force， was founded in 1966 as Chinas core strategic deterrent force.

The newly established Strategic Support Force is a combination of all support forces with strong strategic， fundamental and supportive importance， said Yang Yujun， a spokesman for the Ministry of National Defense.