(April 28, 1965)
In the depth areas, we must be prepared for enemy airborne landings and have corresponding anti-airborne defenses in place. Such landings are intended to disrupt our rear areas and support the main front-line offensive. The airborne forces deployed will not be large—typically only one or two divisions, or perhaps a smaller task force—for any given sector. Therefore, in these key depth positions, where there are mountains, we should dig caves; where there are none, we should create artificial mounds and construct fortifications. Our aim is to prevent the enemy from carrying out deep-penetration airborne operations and to stop them from driving straight through to our interior.
There is nothing mysterious about warfare: if you can win, fight; if you cannot, withdraw. You fight your way, I’ll fight mine. All talk of strategy and tactics ultimately boils down to these four principles. When I withdraw, you can’t hit me. When I attack, I strike at you with precision, aiming to annihilate you. In short, we must wage annihilation battles—always seeking to kill or capture the enemy and destroy their combat strength.
[1]
This section consists of parts of Mao Zedong’s remarks made while listening to reports on operational matters from He Long, Vice Chairman of the CPC Central Military Commission and Vice Premier of the State Council; Luo Ruiqing, Secretary-General of the CPC Central Military Commission, Chief of the General Staff of the People’s Liberation Army, and Vice Premier of the State Council; and Yang Chengwu, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the PLA.