Wu Shengli and the modern Chinese Navy

Wu Shengli is credited as the practical architect of much of the modern Chinese Navy. He took command in 2006 and turned earlier ambitions into delivered force development. His route through training command did not lead to deputy defense minister or another higher political post, despite expectations that it might. One possible explanation is that other parts of the People's Liberation Army would have resisted giving a powerful naval leader still more influence. His tenure offers a direct way to study the origins of China's current naval direction.