Abstract
This study examines the cultural preference formation of China's “wolf warrior” statecraft in relation to Maoist unorthodox warfighting experiences of “public opinion warfare” (yulunzhan). Relying on authoritative texts from the People's Liberation Army (PLA) agencies, with supporting interviews of Chinese scholars, six strands of public opinion warfare are conceptualized as fundamental for understanding the wolf warrior statecraft as a function of the PRC's broader strategic intention to influence the attitudes, behaviors, and decisions of target entities. The study presents novel perspectives for understanding China's global information operations using hybrid means and the gray zone security challenges facing the rules-based international order. The aim is to encourage the study of Chinese public opinion warfare strategies as a more salient area of inquiry and add to knowledge production in the fields of Chinese foreign policy and global international relations (IR) studies.