China Navy commision of the day: The fourth Type 052C LUYANG-II Class Destroyer DDG151郑州 / Zhengzhou

The fourth  Type 052C LUYANG-II Class Destroyer DDG151郑州 / Zhengzhou commissioned yesterday as a member of the 6th Destroyer Squadron, East Sea Fleet, China Navy.

The other three commissioned  Type 052C LUYANG-II Class Destroyers are DDG170, DDG171 and DDG150.

Monday, May 21, 2012

Photo of the day: Zhoushan Naval Base

Home to the 6th Destroyer Squadron, East Sea Fleet, China Navy.    The 6th is scheduled to take on the fourth Type 052C destroyer  Zhengzhou DDG151 later this year after the completion of her sea trails.

1st imported Zubr awarded the China Navy pennant number of 3325

According to China Navy's nomenclature,  3xxx range pennants are reserved for minor amphibious assets.  This is an indication that the China Navy has no plan to operate those Zubrs independently like their traditional LST/LPD counter-parts even if a Zubr can deliver as much as a Type 072 class landing ship and operating at a faster speed.

Other 3000 range China Navy amphibious assets

Photos of the day: high resolution pictures of that new Yuan class

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Are we looking at a new variant of the Yuan class (Type 041) diesel-electric submarine?

A series of photos surfaced recently of a new diesel-electric submarine under construction at the Wuhan shipyard and quickly caused a stir amongst Chinese military forums.  After some heated discussions, some now convinced that it is a new Yuan class variant due to the different sail structure already visible.   

Here is a standard Yuan class for comparison

Z-20 "Copyhawk" medium-lift utility helicopter

Rumors are flying (backed up by CCTV) that a new Chinese medium-lift utility helicopter, the Z-20 or Copyhawk has conducted her maiden flight.  Well, you be the judge of that.

CCTV captures of the day: New Z-9 S&R chopper tested onboard of the Liaoning

Just in case there is accidental drowning near China's first CVBG, especially around the South China Sea

ROC Defense chief nods at plan to recruit 'lost army' descendants

The KMT 93rd Division is a modern day tragedy -- it is really a tearjerker if you read about those abandoned souls

Defense chief nods at plan to recruit 'lost army' descendants
By Adam Tyrsett Kuo, The China Post
December 19, 2013, 12:10 am TWN
       
        [url=http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/national/national-news/2013/12/19/396286/Defense-chief.htm]Defense chief nods at plan to recruit 'lost army' descendants - The China Post[/url]
       
TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Kuomintang lawmaker Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) yesterday suggested that the government naturalize the descendants of the nation's “lost army” in Myanmar and recruit them as soldiers to fill the ranks of the nation's armed forces, to which Defense Minister Yen Ming (嚴明) responded by saying that the legislator's idea is “feasible.”

In the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War, two regiments of the R.O.C. Army's 93rd Division, which hadn't retreated to Taiwan, refused to surrender to the People's Liberation Army and fought their way out of southwestern China, eventually settling in Myanmar and Thailand. The soldiers of the two regiments were later known collectively as the “lost army” or “forgotten army.”

Yen yesterday gave a report at the Legislative Yuan on the progress of the government's plan to establish an all-volunteer military, which has so far been put on hold due to lackluster recruitment.

Lu said that there are a substantial amount of these descendants in Myanmar, and that despite their statelessness, they are hardy and faithful to the Republic of China.

Lu asked the minister whether or not it is possible to amend the Nationality Act so that the descendants can be naturalized in order to attract them to join the armed forces.

Yen responded by saying that the idea is feasible, and that the Ministry of National Defense has helped some of them apply for R.O.C. citizenship.

Although armed forces personnel work longer hours, they tend to earn less than others, Lu said, rhetorically asking who would want to join the military under the present circumstances.

Lu said that a former lawmaker connected with the military had once suggested naturalizing the descendants of the “lost army,” and that she proposes to make that suggestion again on the condition that they receive higher wages.

Non-headline news of the day: China military ship to help guard Syria chemical weapons destruction

China military ship to help guard Syria chemical weapons destruction

BEIJING Thu Dec 19, 2013 4:51am EST

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/12/19/us-syria-crisis-china-idUSBRE9BI0A620131219
(Reuters) - China is to send a military ship to help protect a specially adapted U.S. vessel that will destroy Syria's chemical weapons arsenal, the Foreign Ministry said on Thursday.

Syria is due to hand over deadly toxins which can be used to make sarin, VX gas and other lethal agents under an international agreement forged after an attack on the outskirts of Damascus killed hundreds in August.

The chemicals will be destroyed on board the specially adapted U.S. ship because they are too dangerous to import into any country. There is no agreement yet on where the ship will anchor while the work is carried out.

"China has decided to send a military ship to participate in the protection mission for the shipping of Syrian chemical weapons," ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a daily news briefing.

She added that it was an "important move" to show China's support.

"China hopes that the relevant work on removing Syria's chemical weapons can be completed safely and smoothly. This will assist in pushing for a political resolution to the Syrian issue, will assist in increasing regional peace and stability and accords with the interest of all sides," Hua said.

China has repeatedly called for a political resolution. It has also called for a full and impartial investigation by U.N. chemical weapons inspectors and warned against pre-judging the results. It has said that anyone who uses chemical weapons should be held accountable.

Chemical weapons were likely used in five out of seven attacks investigated by U.N. experts in Syria, where a two-and-a-half-year civil war has killed more than 100,000 people, a U.N. report said last week.

The most serious use was on August 21, when hundreds of people were killed in a sarin gas attack in the outskirts of the capital, Damascus. The worst poison gas attack in a quarter of a century prompted the threat of missile strikes by the United States against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

A month-long tender for the commercial destruction of hundreds of tonnes of industrial chemicals and toxic waste from Syria's chemical weapons starts on Thursday, with contracts likely to go to a handful of firms.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Photos of the day: Forever the Type59 MBT mod!

Photos of the day: a blast from the past

More evidence pointing to just how incredible behind the Chinese military is.

Second Y-20 large military transport aircraft prototype conducted its maiden flight

Rumor of a second Y-20 prototype is now conformed after it flew over Chengdu earlier today.  This is yet another indication suggesting that the Y-20 program is proceeding smoothly

Here are photos of the 1st prototype for a side-by-side comparison.

Non-headline news of the day: Chinese combat peacekeepers in Mali

China's peacekeepers working in Mali
Xinhua | 2013-12-13 21:51:02
By Agencies   
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The first batch of 135 peacekeepers in Mali have conducted the mission's first defense drilling operation to improve emergency handling capabilities, according to the Chinese Ministry of National Defense on Friday.

China sent the peacekeepers to Mali on Dec. 4, marking the first time the country has dispatched security forces for such a mission.

The team consists of engineers, medical staff and security guards from the Shenyang Military Area Command and the 211 Hospital of the People's Liberation Army. They are the advance troops of a 395-strong force that China will send to Mali at the request of the United Nations.

After they arrived, they prepared tents and constructed military bunkers, according to a statement from the ministry's peacekeeping office.

More than 1,700 tonnes of equipment and materials have been transported by sea to the area.

The team will be tasked with repairing roads and bridges, airport runways and facilities at camps, safeguarding the security of mission headquarters, as well as providing medical treatment and epidemic prevention.

The force's remaining servicemen are ready for departure according to the UN arrangement.

Thursday, June 27, 2013

China commits combat troops to Mali

After weeks of speculations,  China has officially committed combat troops to Mali today.

You can read a good summary from today's FT.com

 http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/e46f3e42-defe-11e2-881f-00144feab7de.html#axzz2XRWBsxTX

June 27, 2013 2:14 pm
China commits combat troops to Mali

By Kathrin Hille in Beijing

China has publicly committed combat troops on a UN peacekeeping mission for the first time, marking a big shift in Beijing’s foreign policy.

Having close to 1,900 personnel deployed as of December last year, China is already the largest contributor to UN peacekeeping missions among the five permanent member countries of the UN Security Council. But Beijing has long shied away from sending combat troops.

Photos of the day: Chinese Zubr in Guangzhou