By: Lt Col JS Sodhi (Retd), Editor, GSDN
Neither are all territories annexed by kinetic action nor do countries loose war by physical combat alone. Since times immemorial has the half-front or the enemy within, has caused many a kingdom or nations to collapse. In simplistic terms, the half-front are the unnamed and unidentified internal forces in a nation working against the nation. In the 21st Century too, modern warfare which now encompasses six official domains-land, sea, air, cyber, electromagnetic spectrum and space and numerous unofficial domains which includes the half-front too.
On January 17, 1999, two People’s Liberation Army (PLA) officers, Colonel Qiao Liang and Colonel Wang Xiangsui released their book “Unrestricted Warfare: China’s master plan to destroy America”. The 196-page well-written book had just a simple message to convey that anything that can be weaponised, will be weaponised. The book did not garner much interest in the USA for many years after its release, till it was too late and China had overtaken the USA in economic, military and diplomatic power. The book now is a compulsory-read in most of the US military training institutions and combat formations. A typical example of “Too little, too late”.
But long before this book was published, Adolf Hitler perfected the art of using information warfare and the half-front strategy in warfare. Ever since the Modern Era or the Modern Period started in 1500, Hitler’s use of unconventional methods in annexing territories or using them as strategic pivots for military purposes needs to be understood, for they have a bearing on the half-front dynamics that confront nations that are to go to war soon. And amongst such nations staring at a war on the horizon are India and Taiwan.
Three incidents merit attention which show Hitler’s success of the half-front in foreign nations.
One, on December 08, 1940 as World War II raged on with Germany on a rampage, Sir Winston Churchill, the British Prime Minister wrote to the US President, Franklin D. Roosevelt pleading subtly for America to enter the war. Instead, the USA passed the Lend-Lease Act on March 11, 1941 allowing the lending or leasing war supplies to the Allied nations, thereby staying clear of physically entering the World War II. The main reason was the intense anti-war sentiments in the US that time.
Hans Thompson, the German Charge d’Affairs to the USA in 1940 spent huge amount of money to sway public opinion against the USA entering World War I. Infact, full page advertisements were regularly taken out in leading American newspapers under several US citizens names (with their explicit concurrence) which had bold lines stating “Keep America Out of War”. In one such advertisement in the New York Times on June 25, 1940, US$ 30,000 was paid for the full-page advertisement on the front-page.
However, after Japan attacked Pearl Harbour on December 07, 1941, the USA formally announced the entry in the World War II on December 11, 1941. Had the US entered the World War a year earlier when Churchill wrote to Roosevelt, the huge catastrophe would have been nipped in the early stages rather than the World War prolonging till 1945. But, Adolf Hitler through Hans Thompson had been successful in stalling the entry of America for over a year in the initial months of the World War II which were crucial for Germany.
Two, in early 1940, Dr Franz Six based in London had secretly raised six Einsatzkommando units in London, Bristol, Brimingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh which were to create mayhem once the German forces had landed in Great Britain. These six units were given a list of 2300 prominent personalities in Great Britain who had to be assassinated after the Germans would enter Great Britain.
Adolf Hitler issued Directive No. 16 on July 16, 1940 to invade Great Britain in mid-August 1940 under Operation Sea Lion. The invasion for Great Britain started on August 15, 1940 but ended in a disaster and on October 12, 1940, Hitler called off Operation Sea Lion as the German forces could never land on the British soil. Thus, Dr Franz Six’s six Einsatzkommando units were never operationalised.
Three, when Germany annexed Rhineland on March 07, 1936, Austria on March 13, 1938 and Sudetenland on October 01, 1938 without firing a single shot and loss of any German life. The modus operandi to capture these three foreign territories by Adolf Hitler, who had assumed power as the Chancellor of Germany on January 30, 1933 was propping up activists staying in these foreign territories who were on his pay-roll to ferment violence and create intense internal mayhem. And as unrest would spread in these foreign territories, Germany would stake claim over these territories and subsequently annex them, proclaiming the German writ over these foreign territories. For the sake of world peace, the international community would remain a hapless bystander.
Using the similar tactics of the half-front, Hitler annexed Bohemia and Moravia on March 15, 1939 and the Memel region from Lithuania on March 23, 1939. Thus, in just a short span of three years from 1936-39, Adolf Hitler had annexed five foreign territories with over 100 million people without firing a single shot and loss of any German life.
It is another story that Hitler’s attack on Poland on September 01, 1939 proved to be his nemesis which finally led to the outbreak of the World War II leading to Germany’s defeat, splitting into two nations and Hitler’s suicide in 1945, at a cost of 50 million dead in World War II, including 6 million Jews killed in the Holocaust in Germany.
But, till Hitler did the cardinal mistake of attacking Poland, the half-front had paid him rich dividends.
Taiwan’s Half-Front
After China’s three military attempts to annex Taiwan, called as the Taiwan Strait Crisis failed, China realised that both kinetic and non-kinetic efforts were necessary in case the foremost Chinese military aim of annexing Taiwan had to fructify.
Hence all-out efforts were launched in both the non-kinetic and kinetic domains too in accordance with the book “Unrestricted Warfare: China’s master plan to destroy America” published in 1999 and the Full Spectrum Operations Doctrine promulgated by the USA in 2001 respectively.
China is now the undisputed leader in all the six domains of modern warfare – land, sea, air, cyber, electromagnetic spectrum and space and results in the non-kinetic domain started bearing fruits too.
On May 16, 2022 Chen Ming-tong, the Director General of the National Security Bureau of Taiwan in a stunning announcement stated that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was funding Taiwanese internet celebrities to spread Chinese propaganda in Taiwan using cognitive warfare campaigns.
And on September 08, 2023 Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council reported that CCP’s efforts in Taiwan through cognitive warfare were increasing which could pose grave risk to Taiwan.
In 2024, Radio Free Asia’s probe revealed that a journalist of Xinhua, China’s state news agency, edited scripts and directed guests behind the scenes in one of Taiwan’s television news channels.
2025 saw Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council candidly admitting that Douyin and Xiaohongshu, two famous Chinese-origin applications used widely by the Taiwanese, are vectors for pro-unification propaganda.
China is using religious sentiments too in its non-kinetic preparations to annex Taiwan. It has started targeting the Taiwanese worshippers of the sea-goddess Matsu who is greatly revered in Taiwan using propaganda that Matsu wishes to see the reunification of China and Taiwan.
China has since-long funded the Taiwanese to undergo tours to China, taking care of their travelling and accommodation arrangements, including in the itinerary of the travellers pro-China programmes, apart from meeting Chinese government officials.
In an opinion poll released on February 14, 2025 by the Taiwan Public Opinion Foundation, 13.3% openly favoured unification with China. Not a small number by any standards and a number that has great potential to cause upheaval in Taiwan when the cross-strait war happens. Taiwan has a population of 23.9 million and going by the opinion poll, 3.17 million falls in the pro-unification category.
China’s half-front in Taiwan is on firm ground. Though Taiwan doesn’t have the issue of terrorism like India has, but its half-front has potential to cause immense damage in the wake of the Chinese aggression.
Half-front in India
On July 09, 2025, General Anil Chauhan, the Chief of Defence Staff of the Indian Armed Forces, stated that the convergence of interests between China, Pakistan & Bangladesh will have serious implications for India’s stability and security dynamics.
Eight years earlier, on June 08, 2017 General Bipin Rawat, the then Indian Army Chief had remarked that the Indian Army has to be prepared for the 2.5-front war with the external threats being China and Pakistan and the internal threat being the half-front. That time Bangladesh was pro-India with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in harness.
All changed on August 05, 2024 when Sheikh Hasina had to flee Bangladesh as student protestors swarmed over every possible Bangladeshi government building. Since then, Bangladesh has turned anti-India with vicious statements on India and violent attacks on Hindus settled in Bangladesh, apart from regular desecration of Hindu temples in Bangladesh.
The Indian Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs in its report tabled on December 18, 2025 has unequivocally stated that India faces its greatest strategic challenge in Bangladesh since 1971.
Arunachal Pradesh is one of the three China’s immediate military aims which has been clearly stated in the US’ Annual Report to Congress on Military & Security Developments involving China, released on 23 Dec 2025.
India is staring at a 3.5-front war on its horizon any time after 2030.
Whether Bangladesh opens up militarily against India or not, that only time will tell. But India has to be prepared militarily for Bangladesh along with China, Pakistan and the half-front within.
USA was forced to enter the World War I on 06 Apr 1917 after the Zimmermann telegram was intercepted by the British intelligence a day after it was sent on 17 Jan 1917 from Germany to Mexico, which proposed a defence pact between Germany & Mexico with Germany assuring Mexico that it will help it take Texas, Arizona & New Mexico from USA. The contents of this telegram were made public on 01 March 1917 leading to massive American outcry eventually forcing USA to enter the World War I.
The repeated statements emanating from Bangladesh regarding Siliguri Corridor & India’s seven North-East states definitely have external backing & assured support.
The regular influx of illegal immigrants in India and their seamless integration in the Indian society is a sure recipe for a disastrous broth that is on slow fire. Estimates put an annual influx of 40,000 illegal immigrants to India. In the year 2024, only 2331 illegal immigrants were deported from India. Data for the years 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 wasn’t available in the public domain at the time of writing this article. During the two-year period of 2018-2019, total of 3311 were deported from India. One issue clearly emerges; the deportation of illegal immigrants is far lesser than their influx in India.
After India had an 88-hour military confrontation with Pakistan in May 2025 called Operation Sindoor by India, 11 Indians from different religions and communities, were arrested in India on charges of spying for Pakistan. Regular reports trickle in of educated persons including scientists spying for Pakistan.
The arrest of six doctors in November 2025 as part of a terrorist module linked with the Red Fort Terror Attack, formally declared the entry of white-collar terrorists in India. Till the Red Fort Terror Attack on November 09, 2025 which killed 13 persons in New Delhi, it was generally believed that uneducated and unemployed persons were part of terror modules. However, the arrest of doctors changed the paradigm of terrorism in India.
The half-front operatives be it indoctrinated by radicalism or induced by monetary considerations; both pose grave threat to India.
How many such sleeper cells exist in India is extremely difficult to comment upon. But the fact that the doctors of the Red Fort Terror Attack could evade the Indian intelligence & security agencies for over two years before their eventual arrest, points to the efficacy with which educated terrorists can evade law.
Way ahead for Taiwan & India
The US’ Annual Report to Congress on Military & Security Developments involving China, released on 23 Dec 2025 has termed Taiwan and Arunachal Pradesh in India as two of the three China’s immediate military aims, with Taiwan slated to be attacked by China by end-2027.
All timelines in public domain point to China & Pakistan waging the two-front war on India any time after 2030. In this war, Bangladesh and the half-front in India would play a role of consequence, thus making the 3.5-front war a critical challenge for India.
The next few years are immensely crucial for both Taiwan and India.
History has proven that the entry of one Superpower has always tilted the course of war where the aggressor had enjoyed military superiority ab-initio.
The World War I which broke out on July 28, 1914 had the Central Powers comprising Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria in a commanding position till the entry of the USA on April 06, 1917 which tilted the war in favour of the Allied Powers, resulting in the defeat of the Central Powers and the end of the World War I on November 11, 1918.
World War II which broke out on September 01, 1939 gave the Axis Powers comprising Germany, Italy and Japan enormous success till the USA entered the war on December 11, 1941, eventually resulting in the defeat of the Axis Powers and the end of the World War II on September 02, 1945.
China’s earlier three military attempts to annex Taiwan called as the Taiwan Strait Crisis failed as the USA stood rock-solid behind Taiwan.
The world today has three Superpowers – the USA, Russia and China. These three superpowers will not interfere in each other’s military aspirations as has been made clear in the US’ National Security Strategy released on December 04, 2025.
Why China didn’t activate the half-front in its earlier military confrontations with Taiwan is because China did not have the economic heft back then. All changed after China became the world’s third largest economy in 2007 and the second largest economy in 2010.
And after 1962, China hasn’t gone to war with India. The Doklam Crisis in 2017 and the Galwan Valley Clash in 2020 didn’t erupt into full-fledged wars with India as China was clear that before its war for Taiwan, it will not enter into any military confrontation with any country whatsoever. Why the Galwan Valley Clash happened, has been discussed by the author in his earlier article.
China is militarily superior than both Taiwan and India. And if the military power of Pakistan and Bangladesh is added to China, the balance heavily tilts in favour of China-Pakistan-Bangladesh combine in comparison with India. The half-front in both Taiwan and India have enormous damage potential.
All political parties of both Taiwan and India should concentrate on preparations for the war clouds that are on the horizon for Taiwan and India, and not indulge in trivial issues which consume both time and energy. After all, a person has only 24 hours to work and finite energy at disposal. The half-front needs to be found and tackled in double-time as every minute now matters for both Taiwan and India, apart from of course preparing both economically and militarily.
The next two years for Taiwan and the next five years for India are critical and crucial for both these nations that are at the forefront of facing the Chinese military overtures. It should be remembered that that there no runners up in a war. Any war has only two clear results – the victor and the vanquished.
About the Author
Lt Col JS Sodhi (Retd) is the Founder-Editor, Global Strategic & Defence News and has authored the book “China’s War Clouds: The Great Chinese Checkmate”. He tweets at @JassiSodhi24.
