Today’s blog entry isn’t about destroyers, especially submarines, or anything that displaces more than a few dozen tons. How about something smaller and somehow more interesting: the steady evolution of the Chinese police boats used in the Mekong River Joint Patrol, now sporting a remote weapon station paired with a 15‑round rocket launcher. Because on the Mekong, “insufficient firepower phobia” is a diagnosable condition.
And yes, the whole progression mirrors the PLAN’s own journey from “ragtag coastal militia” to “Type 055 flexing on everyone.” Just scaled down to river size.
The Mission: Keep the Mekong Safe, Quiet, and Boring:
The Mekong River joint patrols are a long‑running, four‑nation security operation involving China, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand, created after the 2011 “October 5” massacre. The mandate is simple: Keep the river open, safe, and uneventful, which is exactly what everyone along the Mekong desperately wants.
The patrols typically involve:
- China’s Yunnan border police / PAP riverine units
- Laotian, Myanmar, and Thai water‑police detachments
- Mixed flotillas of patrol boats, fast craft, and boarding teams
- Regular joint sweeps, inspections, and river checkpoints
China brings the hardware ranging from boats, command elements to UAV overwatch. While the other three bring local knowledge and manpower. Together they’ve turned a once‑chaotic stretch of river (now increasingly full of “call centers”) into something resembling order. And now, apparently, order comes with rocket launchers. Tear gas is for wimps; it never worked well out in that corner of the world anyway.
From Rag to State‑of‑the‑Art: The Four Generations
Gen‑1 (2011): The “Just Make It Float” Era. As China Defense Blog documented back in the early 2010s, the first generation of patrol boats were… boats in the most generous sense.
- Converted flat‑bottomed passenger ferries
- Converted cargo boats
- Maybe 20 meters long, maybe 20 tons
- Light armor, basic radios
- A few machine‑gun mounts welded on
- Crewed by Yunnan border police who deserved hazard pay
It was the Mekong equivalent of the PLAN in the 1950s: “Here’s a fishing boat. Congratulations, it’s a naval asset now.”
Gen‑2 (~2015): Purpose‑Built, Finally
With time (and budget), the second generation arrived — actual riverine patrol craft instead of repurposed river buses.
Features included:
- Proper engines to chase smugglers
- Weather protection so crews weren’t cooked or soaked
- Better weapons mounts
- More robust hulls for longer patrols
Still basic, but recognizably professional.
Gen‑3 (~2019): The Modernization Phase
By the late 2010s, the boats got bigger and more capable.
- Dedicated command‑and‑control compartments
- Improved ballistic protection
- Better crew accommodations for multi‑day missions
- More sensors, more radios, more everything
This is when the fleet started looking like a real riverine force rather than a collection of upgraded tour boats.
Gen‑4 (2024–Present): The “Type 055 of the Mekong”
And now we arrive at the current generation — the ones in the photos below.
Extensive communications, sensor, and navigation arrays
- Remote weapon station
- 15‑round rocket launcher for when diplomacy fails
- Larger hulls with better protection and ergonomics
- Purpose‑built for multi-day patrols
If the PLAN has the Type 055, the Mekong patrol has… whatever this is. A river gunboat with a counter‑bandit MLRS. The spirit is the same.
https://en.chinadiplomacy.org.cn/2025-11/26/content_118195373.shtml
159th joint patrol of Mekong River begins
KUNMING, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- Law enforcement authorities from China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand on Tuesday launched their 159th joint patrol of the Mekong River to combat cross-border crime.
The operation began at approximately 9 a.m. Tuesday, when three Chinese law enforcement vessels departed from the Jingha port in southwest China's Yunnan Province, marking the official start of the joint patrol. Lao and Myanmar patrol boats left the Muang Mo port in Laos and the Wan Pong port in Myanmar simultaneously, bound for a pre-determined area.
Over 100 law enforcement personnel and seven patrol vessels from China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand are participating in the patrol. Their mission includes joint land-water inspections and training along key parts of the Mekong River, targeting cross-border crimes like drug trafficking, fraud, smuggling and illegal immigration.
During the patrol, relevant law enforcement agencies from the four countries will hold an information-exchange meeting in Chiang Saen, Thailand, to analyze the security situation in the Lancang-Mekong drainage area, discuss case information and plan future cooperation priorities.
The Mekong River -- known as the Lancang River in China -- is a vital waterway for cross-border shipping. China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand have been conducting joint patrols of the river since December 2011.
Wednesday, October 02, 2024
Mekong Patrol Update
Two new "command" variant police boots launched at Menghan Town, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Prefecture, to support the Mekong patrol, marking those two the fourth generation of police boats for this "civilian mission"
Thursday, January 05, 2012
Chinese, Burmese ships attacked on Mekong River
Chinese, Burmese ships attacked on Mekong River
By Zhang Ming'ai
0 Comment(s)Print E-mail China.org.cn, January 6, 2012
http://www.china.org.cn/world/2012-01/06/content_24339265.htm
Four Chinese cargo ships and one Burmese patrol ship were attacked on the Mekong River on Jan. 4, river police in charge of security on the Mekong River in north and northeast Thailand told People's Daily.
Police force from China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand launches joint patrol along the Mekong River in Guanlei Port in Dai Autonomous Prefecture of Xishuangbanna, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Dec. 10, 2011.
Police force from China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand launch joint patrol along the Mekong River in Guanlei Port in Dai Autonomous Prefecture of Xishuangbanna, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Dec. 10, 2011. [Sina.com]
Quoting a police report, an officer said that the Myanmar patrol ship and Chinese cargo ships near a Burmese dock were attacked by armed assailants in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
The report went on to state that the armed assailants fired M79 rockets at the ships, with the first rocket falling in the river and the second exploding near the patrol ship. Due to low lighting conditions at the time of the incident, the patrol ship was unable to determine the source of the attack and subsequently could not offer a meaningful armed response.
The police report concluded that the incident has greatly affected shipping services on the Mekong River.
Although no Chinese ships were hit in the attack, crew members expressed concerns over security on the river.
Shipping services were restored on the Mekong last December after their suspension following the deaths of 13 Chinese sailors in cargo ship attacks on the river on Oct. 5, 2011.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
China deploys patrol boats on Mekong
Those patrol boats are purposely built for small arms fire-fights – well-protected by 100mm armor plates, fronted by 12.7mm mounts. It is no type 527 riverine but good luck trying to sink it with RPG. (Guess who picks up the tab for those patrol boats?)
Myanmar boarder policeLoas boarder police (nice police camo)
China boarder police
China deploys patrol boats on Mekong: state media
AFPAFP –
http://news.yahoo.com/china-deploys-patrol-boats-mekong-state-media-052210019.html
China's national flag is seen flying from the back of a ship sailing down the Mekong river. China has deployed more than 300 armed police to patrol the river in boats in collaboration with Myanmar, Thailand and Laos after a deadly attack in October, according to state-run media
China's national flag is seen flying from the back of a ship sailing down the Mekong …
China has deployed more than 300 armed police to patrol the Mekong river in boats in collaboration with Myanmar, Thailand and Laos after a deadly attack in October, according to state-run media.
Two months ago, 13 Chinese sailors were killed on a section of the river south of China's border, raising concerns in Beijing for the safety of crews and cargoes sailing south through an area rife with drug warfare and smuggling.
Citing officials, the official China Daily newspaper said that Chinese police would escort 10 private cargo ships, including the boats that were attacked on October 5 by what is thought to have been a drug gang.
"The special force will serve as the first joint-patrol law enforcement team of the national border defense department, committed to safeguarding the international waterway," said public security deputy minister Meng Hongwei.
The Mekong flows through China's southwestern province of Yunnan into Southeast Asia, serving as a major trade route through several countries including Cambodia and Vietnam.
China reacted angrily to the October attack, sending patrol boats down the Mekong to retrieve 164 stranded Chinese sailors and 28 cargo ships and calling on diplomats from Thailand, Laos and Myanmar to speed up investigations.
Since then, police in Thailand have detained nine soldiers who are suspected of killing the Chinese sailors and are also thought to have links with a Myanmar drug kingpin.
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Finally a purposely design and build riverine for the Mekong River patrol.
After 8 rounds of joint patrols with the Laotian security forces (and being shot at), the PAP finally brings their purposely design and build riverine into the fray. That being said, they still have a long way to go before they are in the same class as the US Navy Riverine Command's Sweden built Dockstavarvet. SAFE Boats
Monday, January 16, 2012
Being shot at -- the rite of passage for any power.
RPT-Chinese ship fired on in Mekong, patrols respond
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/15/china-mekong-idUSL3E8CF0CS20120115
Sun Jan 15, 2012 6:37am EST
(Corrects spelling of Xishuangbanna in second paragraph)
Jan 15 (Reuters) - A Chinese cargo ship carrying logs on the Mekong river was fired on by unidentified attackers, spurring a response by Chinese and Laotian police, the Ministry of Public Security said on Sunday.
The Shengtai-11 was returning to Xishuangbanna, in the Chinese border province of Yunnan, from Thailand when it was fired on from the Lao side of the river, the ministry said. No-one was injured.
China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand conducted a joint armed patrol on the Mekong in December, after an October incident in which 13 Chinese sailors were killed. Their cargo ships were attacked in the Golden Triangle, which is notorious for drug smuggling.
Another joint patrol was underway on Saturday, the China Daily said on its website.
China's growing wealth and international status has allowed it to extend its law enforcement beyond its own borders in recent years. Its navy now escorts Chinese ships past the troubled Horn of Africa while Chinese police have arrested and repatriated citizens accused of ethnic separatism and other crimes who have sought refuge in neighboring countries.
The Mekong originates in the Himalayas and runs through China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. The six countries are committed to developing the river together, although China's plans to build dams along the river or its tributaries have alarmed its downstream neighbours.
(Reporting By Lucy Hornby; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)
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