Long expected, the third PLAN Marine Brigade is now here.

The commission of the third PLAN Marine Brigade should come as no surprise since "with great power comes great Marines".  The current two-Marine Brigade ORBAT simply does not have the manpower to fulfill all those new "historical missions" the PLA high command has planned for them.  The question is really about which PLA ground unit will be transferred to the navy and how soon.

The first PLAN Marine Brigade commissioned on May 1980.  164th Motorized Infantry Division, 41st Army Group Army transferred to the Chinese Marine Corps as the 164th Marine Brigade on July 1998.  This new Marine Brigade is another army transfer, this time from the 77th "Yimeng/沂蒙" Motorized Infantry Brigade, 26th Group Army, Jinan MR/ Northern Theater Command.

The 77th is a proud PLA outfit, commissioned by the CMC on December 1945 and participated in some of the major campaigns during the Chinese Civil War (The Battle of Luannan, the Battle of Laiwu, the Battle of Menglianggu, the Battle of Kaifeng, the Battle of Huaihai, the Battle of the Yangtze River, and the Battle of Shanghai).  It also took part in the Second, Fourth, and Fifth campaigns of the "War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea".

Yimeng Brigade's unit sleeve insignia can be seen from the picture above  

Saturday, January 14, 2017

ZTL09 8x8 Wheeled Light Tank to the PLAN Marine??

ZTL09 8x8 Wheeled Light Tanks sporting the now-famous "Blue Smurf" camo were spotted in Sanya City, near the HQ of the PLAN Marine.  Rumor has it that they are now getting those wheeled new toys to increase their mobility for MOOTW and non-amphibious operations.  Time will tell.

Sunday, January 17, 2016

Photos of the day: PLAN Marine anti-terror training pics

Saturday, January 02, 2016

Send In the PLAN Marine

Shortly after the passage of new law authorizing the PLA to conduct counter-terrorism operations overseas, the PLAN marine now heads to Xinjing for some baptism of fire under "desert conditions".    Coincidence?

Chinese marines leave for military training in Xinjiang
Source: XinhuaEditor: Dong Zhaohui
2016-01-02 16:250

GUANGZHOU, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of Chinese marines will be deployed in the next few days to a training base in northwest China's Xinjiang to begin their first military exercise of 2016.

As the Chinese military expands its training sites and conditions, the Xinjiang base gives troops a real combat situation under desert conditions.

Previous drills were conducted at a training base in north China's Inner Mongolia, cold regions in northeast China, and in highland jungles.

The drill will improve troops' fighting abilities "in a wider area, a larger space and in a more complicated environment," said a military source.

The soldiers will be transported via a 5,900-kilometer route from southern province of Guangdong to Xinjiang by train, air or truck. Their mobilization, desert combat tactics and coordination will be tested, and they will also carry out a combat exercise with an infantry division of the Lanzhou Military Area Command.

Photos from last year's Military Operations in Urban Terrain (MOUT) drill

Sunday, December 27, 2015

New Law Allows PLA to Undertake Counterterror Missions Overseas

China's new counter-terrorism law has made it legal for the People's Liberation Army (PLA) to participate in counterterror missions overseas.
The PLA and the country's armed police forces may carry out such operations with the approval from the Central Military Commission, says the law adopted by top legislature on Sunday.
Public security and national security authorities may also send personnel overseas for counter-terrorism missions, with the approval from the State Council and agreements from concerned countries.
The law also stipulates that related departments, authorized by the State Council, may collaborate with overseas governments and international organizations in holding policy dialogues, communicating on intelligence information, enforcing the law and regulating international capitals.
The new law comes at a delicate time for China and for the world at large - terror attacks in Paris, the bombing of a Russian passenger jet over Egypt, and the brutal killings of hostages committed by the notorious Islamic State (IS) extremist group are alerting the world about an ever-growing threat of terrorism.
It will provide legal support to the country's counter-terrorism activities as well as collaboration with the international society, said An Weixing, an official with the public security ministry, at Sunday's press conference.