BEIJING – Chinese military stationed in Tibet has carried out a drill totest their logistics, armament support capabilities and military-civilianintegration in the remote Himalayan region, official media reported here onFriday.

The drill carried out by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) units onTuesday was the first such reported exercise in Tibet since the Doklamstandoff.

State-run ‘Global Times’ which reported the drill also cited the PLA’s13-hour long exercise conducted at an elevation of 4,600 metres in Augustlast year.

Analysts hailed the Tuesday’s drill, which was held in cooperation withlocal companies and government, as an important move towardmilitary-civilian integration, a strategy to realise the country’s goal ofbuilding a strong military in the new era, the report said.

An important component of the drill was the military-civilian integrationstrategy, a key component in Tibet where the Dalai Lama’s legacy stilllingers on.

The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau has an adverse climate and complex topography.Over a long period of time, it is very difficult to provide soldiers withlogistics and armament support, the report said.

To solve the difficulties in personnel survival, delivery, material supply,rescue, emergency maintenance and road safety, the military has adopted amilitary-civilian integration strategy and constantly advanced logisticssupport capabilities, Zhang Wenlong, head of the command logistics supportdepartment, was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua News Agency.

Zhang said that the drill aimed to explore a new mode of military-civilianintegration in the plateau command following the reshuffle of the militarysystem.

During the drill, a local petroleum company supplied fuel immediately whenthe armoured unit ran out of fuel and the city government of Lhasadelivered a steady flow of food to soldiers after a day of mock battle, thereport said.

“The biggest challenge of battle at the high altitude is to providesustainable logistics and armament support. In the 1962 China-India borderconflict, China failed to protect its fruits of victory due to poorlogistics support. Although local Tibetan residents provided soldiers withtemporary support, it was not sustainable,” Song Zhongping, a militaryexpert, told the Global Times.

“The drill showed that military-civilian integration is a feasible strategyand could help form stronger combat power,” he added.