On August 31, 2026, the Chinese Communist Party’s National People’s Congress revised and passed the “National Defense Mobilization Law,” adding provisions to enhance the rapid transition from peace to war, which will come into effect on October 1. Taiwanese legislator Chen Guanting stated that Taiwan must strengthen its ability to integrate civilian resources for wartime readiness and accelerate the construction of national resilience, energy security, and defense self-sufficiency.
Starting October 1, the Chinese Communist Party will implement the newly revised National Defense Mobilization Law, which for the first time defines “national defense mobilization” as measures taken by the country to address threats to national sovereignty, unity, territorial integrity, security, and development, ensuring the rapid transition from peace to war, converting economic and social strength into defense capabilities.
Chen Guanting, convenor of the National Defense and Diplomacy Committee at the Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China, stated that the Chinese Communist Party has made significant revisions to the national defense mobilization system after 16 years. By explicitly incorporating economic and social forces into the national defense mobilization system, they are enhancing the ability to swiftly transition from peace to war. Taiwan must remain vigilant against the trend of the Chinese Communist Party further integrating civilian resources, industries, and technological capabilities into the national military system.
This amendment is particularly notable because it outlines how the Chinese Communist Party plans to quickly mobilize the social and economic resources accumulated during peacetime in times of war. By defining “national defense mobilization” as “ensuring the rapid transitioning from peace to war, converting economic and social power into defense capabilities,” it shows that the CCP’s mobilization mindset is moving towards the comprehensive integration of societal resources.
Furthermore, Chen Guanting pointed out another significant change in the new law, which is the transition from the previous “requisition” of civil resources to further include “collection.” This means that after implementing national defense mobilization, the Chinese Communist Party can directly incorporate civilian resources into the national mobilization system through more comprehensive legal authorizations. Additionally, the new law includes sectors such as finance, transportation, telecommunications, information networks, energy, healthcare, and food supply within the scope of possible special measures.
Chen Guanting emphasized that Taiwan cannot view these signals in isolation. From military expansion to the integration of economic, technological, industrial, and civilian resources, the CCP is continuously enhancing the institutional foundations for rapidly transforming the nation’s overall strength into military capabilities. Taiwan must closely observe how the CCP utilizes this institutional structure to integrate civilian resources and potentially utilize them in grey-zone operations against Taiwan, cognitive warfare, or even military conflicts.
In response to the Chinese Communist Party’s adjustment of the national defense mobilization system, he emphasized that Taiwan should not only observe what the other side is doing but, more importantly, accelerate the enhancement of its resilience and countermeasure capabilities. “As China prepares to transform more national resources into wartime capabilities, Taiwan must consider what capabilities it needs to reserve to maintain normal societal and national operations in times of crisis.”
Energy security is a crucial aspect of this preparation, according to Chen Guanting. Taiwan must continue to increase the resilience and surplus of its energy systems, establish critical material and resource reserves, and transform its defense industries beyond mere weapon procurement to foster self-reliant capabilities in production, maintenance, and sustained reinforcement.
Using unmanned vehicles as an example, he highlighted the rapid pace of system updates and high wartime consumption levels for drones and unmanned boats. Therefore, in addition to procurement, Taiwan must focus on establishing domestic mass production, maintenance, and supply chain capabilities. “We cannot solely prepare the first batch of equipment but must possess the capacity to continue production, maintenance, and sustain combat readiness after a crisis occurs.”
Chen Guanting stressed that the Chinese Communist Party is strengthening its ability to transition from peace to war through legal and institutional adjustments, prompting Taiwan to expedite the construction of national resilience, energy security, and defense self-sufficiency. “True deterrence lies in enabling Taiwan to maintain operations and defense continuity despite prolonged pressure and conflict risks.”
Ma Yixiang, former Secretary-General of Taiwan’s Progressive Foundation and a reserve colonel in the Air Force, shared on Facebook his thoughts about the recent revision of the “National Defense Mobilization Law” by the Chinese Communist Party. If there were a conflict in the Taiwan Strait, would Taiwan-owned factories in China become part of the CCP’s war mobilization strategy? He cautioned, “In the past, when discussing risks for Taiwan businesses in China, we considered markets, regulations, politics, and supply chains; now we must also include this: how much of a company’s assets, technology, manpower, and transportation capabilities left in China could potentially be mobilized for the CCP’s national defense efforts during wartime? This will change the way we monitor war alerts.”
He suggested that Taiwan should start developing a new concept: “War Mobilization Exposure.” In the event of a Taiwan Strait conflict, American, Japanese, or European businesses would face the risk of their assets in China being mobilized for war. However, Taiwanese businesses may face a more ludicrous scenario: “Taiwan’s own capital, equipment, technology, and production capacity may ultimately be used to support PRC military operations against Taiwan.”
He concluded that a single legal revision by the CCP does not signify an imminent attack on Taiwan, but at the very least, Taiwan should begin to inquire about how much of its own capital, technology, and production capacity are within the potential range of this mobilization system if the CCP is assessing its war mobilization potential.
In summary, Taiwan must proactively address the implications of China’s revised National Defense Mobilization Law, emphasizing the urgency of fortifying national resilience, energy security, and defense self-sufficiency to ensure the country’s ability to maintain operations and defense under mounting pressure and potential conflict situations.