The aim of this paper is to examine the rising power of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in China’s strategic vision. Since the founding of new China in 1949, there have been instances of PLA leaders challenging the Communist Party of China (CPC) leadership. But on each instance the Party prevailed emphatically. The dictum “The Party commands the gun, and the army protects the Party” is still very much in place. In the last two decades, however, the relationship between the Party and the PLA has undergone some significant changes.