"Strategic sealift beyond Taiwan is quite limited. China has never possessed a robust capability to transport and land troops under combat conditions" (page 217)
Global Security also chimed in on the sealift question (link here)
First among these limitations is the capability to transport and sustain more than one division of ground troops and equipment by sea or air, according to the US DOD report to Congress on China's military [down from three four decades earlier]. The PLA Navy’s total amphibious lift capacity was estimated in 2009 to be one infantry division of approximately 10,000 troops and equipment at one time.
Or as Patrick Tyler correctly pointed out in his NYT article (link here)
If China has learned anything in decades of conflict with Taiwan, it is that an all-out invasion of Taiwan is well beyond its capabilities. The joke commonly heard among Western military experts is that a Chinese assault on Taiwan would have to be called ''the million man swim.''
To perform this historic "million man swim" the PLA could call up their two Marine Brigades, two Amphibious Mech Infantry Divisions (the 1st of the 1st Group Army, and the 124th of the 42nd Group Army) and every unit of the 1st, 12th, 31st, 41st and 42nd Group Army of the East Theater Command. No worries, they will be dressed up but with no boat to go.
Click on the vid below to see the amphibious assault drill
1 comment:
The good thing about looking at Army rather than Marine Amphibious Drills is that you won't see those blue smurfs.
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