During the Gulf War, the Chinese military officers were watching. At that time, the Iraqi army was an army with more combat experience and a slightly more advanced degree of technology than the PLA.

Iraq in 1990 had one of the most powerful armies in the Arab world, with a total strength of 950,000 regular troops, 480,000 reserve troops, 5,600 tanks, 7,500 armored vehicles, 3,800 artillery pieces, and 770 combat aircraft. In addition, there are 650,000 paramilitary forces in Iraq.

During the war, Iraq also mobilized the so-called People's Army, which has 8 million troops. In 1990, Iraq's total population was only 18.92 million. Beginning in August 1990, the main forces of the Iraqi army were gradually moved to southern Iraq and the Kuwait theater of operations.

Before the final outbreak of the war on January 17, 91, 43 of the Iraqi Army's 47 divisions (including 24 divisions increased by mobilization, 77 divisions in history) were transferred to the theater of operations, with 2,200 tanks, 1,600 armored vehicles and 1,100 artillery pieces.

Before the outbreak of the war, Saddam Hussein had secretly fallen back into the interior of Iraq with the help of satellite jammers.

In addition, before the 1991 Gulf War, Iraq had the largest and most complete and modern integrated air defense system in the entire Middle East.

Iraq's integrated strategic air defense system "KARI" is configured according to the model of the former Soviet Union, designed by the French, and covers the entire territory of Iraq. The whole system includes 4 regional air defense combat centers, 16 interception guidance centers, and more than 70 air defense command and reporting centers, which can comprehensively control all air defense units, air bases, and ground-to-air missile positions.

The highest command structure of the whole system is located at the Air Defence Command Headquarters in the city of Baghdad, which is equipped with a legal mainframe computer that can centrally process all information, and can issue orders using microwave and fiber-optic cable communication systems, as well as civilian communication systems. All key nodes of the system are covered by solid underground bunkers. Under the KARI system, Iraqi fighter jets, surface-to-air missiles, and antiaircraft artillery form a three-dimensional fire network, which basically covers all airspace.

Of course, this system was detected by the United Nations intelligence agencies, but fortunately with the covert help of the Xingyue Organization, otherwise the contrast in combat effectiveness would have been completely disproportionate, and Iraq's air supremacy would have been handed over to others.

At the end of August 1990, when meeting with foreign leaders, Saddam Hussein said: "I am well aware of the technological superiority of the United States, especially the air superiority. ”

In September 1990, Saddam Hussein addressed the army, saying: "You know that the Air Force can already decide ...... ground war."

However, the Americans won the war with Iraq's superior ground forces, and the casualties (by historical standards) were negligible, and while the United States used all kinds of high-precision and sophisticated weapons to attack the Iraqi army, it also demonstrated to the whole world the form and mode of modern warfare, which caused great shock to the armed forces of many countries, including China.

This prompted the Chinese army to begin to reflect. In the 80s, the pace of reform in the Chinese-military sphere was far less than that of the reform of social and economic life. The Gulf War provided an opportunity and direction for this change. A big problem is in terms of equipment.

By 1990, the technical level of the PLA was still inferior to that of the Iraqi army. At that time, the Iraqi Air Force had MiG-23, MiG-25 and MiG-29, while the PLA Air Force only had the Chinese imitation of the MiG-21 (J-7) and older models such as the MiG-19 (J-6).

During the Chinese Liberation War and the Korean War, the PLA used its numerical and efficient use of troops to defeat (or at least draw) more technologically advanced opponents. In Vietnam, key anti-access technology helped weaken the U.S. air offensive.

Historically, the PLA has used numerical superiority to compensate for its disadvantage in military technology relative to the superpower, but the allied forces led by the United States pierced the outnumbered Iraqi army like a "hot knife cutting butter". This understanding of the Gulf War helped promote the modernization of the PLA.

In particular, in the Air Force and Navy, China immediately took steps to upgrade its military technology, often by procuring the most advanced Soviet equipment. China also wants to acquire military technology from Europe, but sanctions on arms sales have hampered efforts in this regard. Finally, China has accelerated the progress of technological research and development of its own military industry.

The Gulf War did not show that a strike in depth can decisively win a modern war, but it certainly showed that long-range precision strikes can help disrupt enemy operations and even inflict heavy damage on enemy forces. The PLA soon began to develop capabilities in this area. The importance of the PLA Navy and Air Force relative to the Army began to rise, and both began to focus on platforms that provided opportunities for long-range strikes.

The Second Artillery Corps has also shifted its focus from nuclear deterrence to long-range precision strikes by ballistic and cruise missiles. The Gulf War provided a ready-made template for China-military, and government decision-makers, as well as lessons on how to fight (and how not to) wars in the future.

Now the "blowout" development of PLA (People's Liberation Army) weapons and equipment is closely related to the shock that PLA received from the Gulf War in the 90s, and the country launched a series of weapons development and pre-research projects in the 90s, while keeping up with the pace of the Western military industry, including J-20, high-altitude and long-endurance UAVs and other high-tech equipment, all of which were launched in this context.

At the same time, the state has also accelerated the introduction of advanced Russian-made weapons and equipment (such as the introduction of the Su-27), focusing on building a strategic air force, and at the same time vigorously researching electronic warfare and combined operations of various arms, and so on

It can be said that without the Gulf War, there may not be a modern PLA for future generations.

By 1989, the size of the PLA and the proportion of expenditure seemed to be at its limit. After the historic disarmament, the total number of PLA troops dropped to 3.23 million, second only to the 2.37 million in 1958. If the military expenditure index in 1978 was 100, it was only 75.2 in 1988.

In order to ensure the supply of materials, the troops in the north and south of the river began to grow vegetables and raise pigs on their own. Due to the lack of military orders, military enterprises have restructured civilian products.

In June 1991, the top leadership of the armed forces held three forums on the Gulf War, thus opening the prelude to the reform of the Chinese armed forces in the new era. It is only against the backdrop of concentrating efforts on economic construction that the pace of change is particularly faltering.

Luo Tiancheng actually knew in his heart that the pace of modernization and reform of the Chinese army officially began in the 90s, and it was after the Gulf War, before that, Luo Tiancheng did not directly give military technology to the Chinese government, because in the Vietnam War, the upper echelons of the Chinese army believed that the army decided everything, and did not realize the importance of the navy, especially air supremacy. Without awareness, let alone development, even if technology is given, China will not pay attention to it, and the United States will add sanctions against China.

In the middle of 90, due to the outbreak of the Gulf War, the United States announced sanctions against China in June 89, and gradually began to ease, but in terms of important equipment and military technology, the United States has been restricting the acquisition of China. Now the United States is close to the ranks of global hegemons, and it is only one step away.

Luo Tiancheng after the incident, after seeing Saddam Hussein a few times, Saddam Hussein after the war did not have the pre-war spirit, it is estimated that the war caused too much psychological impact on Saddam, a little disheartened, after all, there is really no country in history that dares to challenge 33 countries in the world at one time, Saddam did it, in this battle, the elite troops retreated, and the prestige that should have been lost did not lose much in the final threat to the coalition forces.

The sanctions against Iraq are still there, Saddam Hussein does not have a good solution in terms of funds, and Luo Tiancheng has no way for the time being, after all, he is still developing the oil field first, and the fungus blanket has secretly come to Iraq through Luo Xingchen. 50 units of fungus blankets have been transferred from private islands in Australia and have entered the fields deep underground, absorbing the conversion fields on a daily basis.

At the same time, in the development of the Hafaya oil field, so that the local residents of the Xingyue Group recognition is getting higher and higher, Xingyue mercenaries in June 91 officially changed its name to Xingyue Group, under the jurisdiction of the Xingyue mercenary group, Xingyue military training center, Xingyue oil company, Xingyue bank!