The People's Liberation Army of China (PLA) was organized on August 1, 1927, and therefore China annually celebrates the anniversary of People's Liberation Army Day.
The PLA received its current name in 1946; before that it bore the name of the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army, the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, the Eighth Army and the New Fourth Corps.
The PLA includes the Navy, Air Force, Army of the Ground, Missile Forces, Strategic Forces, Logistics Forces and the People's Armed Militia.
Today, the Chinese Armed Forces are considered the largest in the world (more than 2 million people on active service). The PRC occupies a place of honor among the countries with the most powerful military potential, both technical and human. Also, China has been an active participant in UN peacekeeping missions since 1990.