The Second Artillery Corps of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, commonly referred to as the "Second Artillery", was formally established on July 1, 1966, and is an extremely important branch of the armed forces in China's history. At first, it existed as an independent branch of the armed forces, and its core task was to manage, operate, and use strategic missiles, covering the strategic level from nuclear deterrence to nuclear counterattack, and there was also no shortage of conventional missiles used to carry out campaign and tactical missions. The position of the Second Artillery Corps in the military system is particularly unique and critical, because the missile system under its control has a decisive impact on the strategic balance, so it is directly subordinate to the leadership of the Military Commission, ensuring a highly centralized and unified command and dispatch.
With the passage of time and changes in strategic needs, on December 31, 2015, the Chinese People's Liberation Army made a major adjustment to the Second Artillery Corps. The original Second Artillery no longer existed in the form of a branch, but was officially reorganized into the Chinese People's Liberation Army Rocket Force, and upgraded to an independent service at the same level as the army, navy, and air force. This change fully reflects the great importance that the state attaches to the status of the Strategic Missile Forces and the further strengthening of their functions and roles.
The transformed rocket force has inherited and carried forward the mission of the former Second Artillery Corps, continuously strengthened and improved its strategic strike capability and nuclear counterattack capability, and formed a strategic force that is compatible with nuclear missiles and conventional missiles, and has a range covering near, medium, and long-range ranges, as well as intercontinental. The missile series it is equipped with has extremely high precision strike capability and strategic counterattack capability, whether it is to carry out precision strikes on the enemy's most valuable targets, or to carry out nuclear deterrence and nuclear counterattack missions under extreme circumstances, they have demonstrated incomparable combat effectiveness and strategic deterrence.
Generally speaking, the evolution from the Second Artillery Corps to the Rocket Force is not only a change in name, but also an important milestone in the process of modernization, indicating that China's Strategic Missile Forces are playing an increasingly crucial and irreplaceable role in safeguarding and developing interests.