China Military Watch - Jan 11, 2011

[VinodTK]

‘Chinese clearing forest cover to grab border land’

NEW DELHI: While the government insists that frequent Chinese incursions on the Sino-Indian border are "routine" and according to "established pattern", sources in the security establishment say there are reasons to worry as the "pattern" is fast changing. Apart from frequent patrol drills inside Indian territory, agencies have observed that Chinese troops are also clearing forest cover in Arunachal Pradesh and taking away timber and other forest produce.

Sources said this was a new development as earlier, Chinese troops merely engaged in muscle flexing through intrusions, patrols or short stays on the Indian side. "It has been observed in the recent past that in Arunachal Pradesh, several forest areas along the border have been cleared by Chinese troops. They have carried away timber and other forest produce. There is also evidence of make-shift timber cutting units in the area," said an officer from the security establishment.

Sources said this was a way of asserting ownership of the region by the Chinese. "It is basically a way of saying that the natural resources of the region is ours," the officer said. The August 13 incursion in Arunachal Pradeh's Chaglagam area by Chinese troops, when they came 20 km inside India's territory and stayed for three days, is also being cited as a notable change in the Chinese incursion pattern.

Sources said China so far has been focusing on the Tawang region in Arunachal Pradesh because of its proximity to Tibet, historic ties that give its claim some legitimacy and the existence of one of the most important Tibetan Buddhist monasteries in the region that China fears may be used by the Tibetan government in exile to help the Tibetan struggle against China.

"Most incursions by Chinese troops in Arunachal Pradesh happen in and around the Tawang region. Chaglagam falls in what is called 'rest of Arunachal Pradesh' where Chinese troops have comparatively little activity. So, this incursion is worth looking at carefully," said another officer who has observed Chinese activity in the region.
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[SSridhar]

Just a reminder to all, this is China military watch thread.

[SSridhar]

China Building its First Amphibious Assault Ship - Think Tank - Japan Times

China is building its first amphibious assault ship capable of carrying multiple hovercraft and many helicopters, according to a think tank that monitors Asian defense issues.

The full displacement of the assault ship, which may be put into commission as early as 2015 to strengthen China’s naval landing operations, is 35,000 tons, according to the Kanwa Information Center, a Canada-based private think tank.

Earlier this month, the IHS Jane’s Defense Weekly reported that China has apparently started building its first indigenous aircraft carrier in Shanghai, citing satellite photos. But Kanwa said it believes that the weekly is likely to have mistaken the assault ship for an aircraft carrier.

China already has three 20,000-ton class amphibious warfare ships, known as Type 071, and is currently building another one, but it has not yet had such a large-scale ship designed to carry many helicopters and landing vessels.

The think tank believes that the construction of the new aircraft carrierlike ship is connected to China’s territorial claims over disputed islands such as the Japan-administrated Senkaku Islets in the East China Sea.

[Victor]

If the Chinese can casually harvest Indian timber and cart it back into Tibet without so much as a peep from Delhi, we can expect them to do the same in the A&N islands with such ships. Hell why just timber. They could set up a mine and there's squat we can/will do looks like.

[Surya]

Did anyone watch the clips of the latest Japanese exercises?? This should have singha salivating.

while strictly not china related - who else could that show be for

Tanks, APcs, Arty and attack helos all doing the tandav

[NRao]

AUG 21, 2013 :: India's indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant threat to China: Report

Beijing: Describing the launch of India's indigenous aircraft carrier and Japan's biggest warship since World War II as a threat to China, a report in the state-run media on Tuesday alleged some countries are backing New Delhi to balance Beijing's power.

The launch of India's INS Vikrant and Japan's helicopter carrier serve as a warning for China, said an article on a state-run website.

"Some Chinese scholars emphasize that India has yet to grasp the key technologies of the carrier and that it will rely on other countries to maintain and upgrade the carrier.

"But it is also a fact that many countries are supporting India in developing advanced weaponry, not only for profit but also to balance China's power," said Liu Zongyi, an assistant research fellow with the Centre for Asia-Pacific Studies, Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, in the article.

"India is well aware of the intention of the Western countries. Some politicians and media outlets in Indian deliberately stress the role of India's military buildup in containing China so as to please those traditional powers," it claimed.

But at the same time it said the launch of India's home-built aircraft carrier is indeed worth celebrating, because it marks a firm stride toward the indigenization of arms. The triumphant launch of the hull demonstrated India's progress in building giant surface carriers, it said.

"The launch also shows that the Indian government has had preliminary success in localizing arms production. The government has invested billions of dollars in the
construction, research and development of domestic shipbuilding," it said.

Together with the launch of domestically built nuclear submarine INS Arihant, it will help boost the ruling Congress Party's election chances next year. "They do mark India's achievements in localizing arms production," it said.

While China's rise is mainly an economic one, India's emergence is more prominent in the military sphere, it said quoting Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
report stating that India has been the largest weapons importer ever since 2011.

"The so-called external threats may serve as an excuse for engaging in military expansion as well as corruption, which has been endemic in India's scandal-ridden weaponry development in recent years," it said.

[kit]

AUG 21, 2013 :: India's indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant threat to China: Report

Beijing: Describing the launch of India's indigenous aircraft carrier and Japan's biggest warship since World War II as a threat to China, a report in the state-run media on Tuesday alleged some countries are backing New Delhi to balance Beijing's power.

The launch of India's INS Vikrant and Japan's helicopter carrier serve as a warning for China, said an article on a state-run website.

"Some Chinese scholars emphasize that India has yet to grasp the key technologies of the carrier and that it will rely on other countries to maintain and upgrade the carrier.

"But it is also a fact that many countries are supporting India in developing advanced weaponry, not only for profit but also to balance China's power," said Liu Zongyi, an assistant research fellow with the Centre for Asia-Pacific Studies, Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, in the article.

"India is well aware of the intention of the Western countries. Some politicians and media outlets in Indian deliberately stress the role of India's military buildup in containing China so as to please those traditional powers," it claimed.

But at the same time it said the launch of India's home-built aircraft carrier is indeed worth celebrating, because it marks a firm stride toward the indigenization of arms. The triumphant launch of the hull demonstrated India's progress in building giant surface carriers, it said.

"The launch also shows that the Indian government has had preliminary success in localizing arms production. The government has invested billions of dollars in the
construction, research and development of domestic shipbuilding," it said.

Together with the launch of domestically built nuclear submarine INS Arihant, it will help boost the ruling Congress Party's election chances next year. "They do mark India's achievements in localizing arms production," it said.

While China's rise is mainly an economic one, India's emergence is more prominent in the military sphere, it said quoting Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
report stating that India has been the largest weapons importer ever since 2011.

"The so-called external threats may serve as an excuse for engaging in military expansion as well as corruption, which has been endemic in India's scandal-ridden weaponry development in recent years," it said.

Are the chinese becoming more predictable now

[kit]

While looking at google maps, a thought came that from an Indian perspective its not an easy thing for a Chinese Navy surface ship to enter our backyard without being detected, its their sub fleet that's going to be a cause for worry for us and which we need to keep a close watch. The noise about the Chinese carrier is basically from the western press especially the US.

guess the Liaoning is more of a concern for the USN than the IN !

[kit]

China's Space Program Tries to Catch Up

While the path of ongoing development of space is unknown, the earlier a country enters this new space race, the better. Even so, establishing a strategic presence in space requires an ongoing and active development of space programs. It is for this reason that China, while starting later than the United States and Russia, is quickly and urgently expanding its technological capabilities in space.

... holds true for india as well ..

[Sagar G]

Yes, saving assets is better than losing trillions of dollars in business. You know what's even better than that? Not losing trillions of dollars in business.

Good that you can understand this point, China would do itself a service by not trying to be a smart ass and hence saving itself blushes in India's backyard.

The west won't come to save China, it'll come to save themselves trillions of dollars. You're a fool if you think the west will just stand idly by while India takes literally trillions of dollars away from them, not to mention sinking their ships and killing their civilians while at it.

Han munnas looking upto the Americans to save them, imagine the irony Who is talking about sinking and killing of civilians of random nations. In the event of a Indo China war only your civilians and your ships will be targeted by IN and if some other country tries to be a smartass then have no doubt that they will receive the same treatment. When nuclear threat from west couldn't stop us from doing what we did in 1971 then what powers does the west have to take on a nuclear capable India ??? Read about Operation Trident and Operation Python of IN and by the way if you keep yoursrelf aware of current happenings then the west is itching to have a base in India so that it can contain China. If China doesn't want to see the writing on the wall then be my guest I am not complaining . Enjoy this as well

India extends Malacca Strait reach

If you can't see through that, there's no point in discussing this matter any further. It'll just be the same bravado as spewed by the nuke everyone crowd.

Seeing the subsequent downhill skiing from you from war to "border skirmish" it would be wise of you to either not rake up issues which you can't debate on or stop pipe dreaming. At the same time given that you have friends who are curlier than pubic hair and stiffer than erect d*ck your behaviour doesn't amazes me. We can see why your countries are friends

[Hiten]

surprising ToI didn't run it as the front page news. Instead delegated it to be written by a for-web-only columnist. Easier to disown it later, if needed, this way
FWIW
China conducted 3-4 nuclear blasts in Tibet in 2005 to divert Brahmaputra

In a surreptitious move fraught with dangers of nuclear radiation in areas bordering India, China conducted three to four “low yield atomic explosions” in March 2005 to aid in clearing mountainous terrain to divert the Yarlung Tsangpo river, also known as the Brahmaputra, from north to south in Tibet.

According to classified Indian intelligence documents accessed by TOI, the blasts were reported at Moutou in Tibet and also near the Great Bend of the Brahmaputra. The blasts were low yield nuclear explosions and were conducted at significant depths to avoid detection.

As alarm bells rang in South Block, the issue was taken up by the Indian ambassador in Beijing with the Chinese authorities who flatly denied that atomic blasts had been executed to divert the waters of the Brahmaputra. It was not before three years had elapsed that information on the blasts in Tibet was shared at the highest levels of the National Security Council (NSC) with the United States during the then American defence secretary Robert Gates, a former CIA director, during his visit to India in 2008. At the time, US authorities admitted to their Indian counterparts the complete failure of their satellites to detect the blasts.

When contacted, India’s the then deputy national security adviser S D Pradhan confirmed the blasts and the efforts made to confront the Chinese with the evidence. Other sources in the Research and Analysis Wing and the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) too corroborated the information. However, the security establishment, particularly the NSC, sought to play down the “grave” issue.

A top secret Chinese plan to take the Brahmaputra to arid zones in the north by building a 200-km-long canal passing through Mount Namcha was presented by experts from that country in December 1995 at the Chinese Academy of Engineering Physics.

The Indians learnt about the plan toward the end of 1997 when an American scientific journal published a comprehensive account. In 2003, a section of the Chinese media reported that a feasibility plan, aimed at diverting the waters of the Brahmaputra from south to north, was underway. This was confirmed by Indian satellite imagery which discovered that dams were being constructed at Dagu, Jiacha and Jiexu in Tibet.

As the Chinese went ahead relentlessly with their objective of diverting the Brahmaputra, a draft outline of China’s 10th five year plan clearly stated that the river would be diverted from south to north through three channels in the eastern, central and western regions from Yangzhou, Danjiang Reservoir and Tongtianhe, respectively.

According to highly placed NSC sources, two factors confirmed the March 2005 atomic blasts. First, there was unprecedented flooding of the Brahmaputra in June-July 2005, raising the level by 30 metres on the Indian side. This was interpreted as the outcome of the Chinese engineers’ efforts to divert the river water to facilitate their work. At the time, the Assam government took up the matter of massive flooding with the Centre, suspecting a Chinese hand.

Second, in October 2008, Indian intelligence noticed that Chinese engineers had begun work through Tibet’s Galung La mountain in Nyingchi prefecture near the Great Bend of the Brahmaputra, confirming yet again that nuclear blasts had taken place there earlier.

China has steadfastly claimed that all the dams on the Yarlung Tsangpo are run of the river, which the Indian authorities are loathe to believe. India’s concern is that its share of Brahmaputra’s waters would be reduced and that China could use it as a weapon to cause heavy damage to the Indian side by releasing water at anytime it wished.

http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.co ... rahmaputra

[VinodTK]

China, Pakistan 'pledge to further boost' their military ties

Bracing up to hold a 20-day joint exercise between their Air Forces, China and Pakistan today "pledged to further boost" the cooperation between the two militaries.

Vice Chairman of Central Military Commission Xu Qiliang met Pakistan's chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Khalid Shameem Wynne and the two generals "pledged to further boost military cooperation between the two countries", official media reported here today.

Xu said China and Pakistan are good neighbors, good friends, good partners and good brothers, and the practical military-to-military cooperation will not only benefit the two countries, but also help to safeguard peace and stability in the region, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Hailing the traditional friendship and the smooth development of the military ties between the two sides, Wynne said he looks forward to more exchanges and cooperation between the two militaries to address challenges with joint efforts.

Both Wynne and his Chinese counterpart Fang Fenghui co-chaired the 10th China-Pakistan defense and security consultation in Beijing held yesterday.

The meeting came ahead of the joint exercises by both Air Forces to be held from September 2 to 22 in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, bordering Pakistan Occupied Kashmir. The drill, code-named "Shaheen (Eagle)-2," will be held in Hetian Prefecture, China's Defence Ministry said earlier.

[SSridhar]

China conducted 3-4 nuclear blasts in Tibet in 2005 to divert Brahmaputra

China has been claiming that the project to divert Brahmaputra to North has been on hold. India should be able to 'see' the status of the sites where these explosions are said to have taken place with the assets that they have been having up in the sky for several years now. GoI must come clean on this rather than simply parroting the Chinese line.

[VinodTK]

Chinese transgressions on the rise in Ladakh, India to fortify border outposts

[Austin]

Chinese Aerobatic Team flying J-10 at MAKS

http://youtu.be/8l3G58jBOwQ

[PratikDas]

ToI blog, Nandygram: China moved N-missiles and launchers via Karakoram highway to Pak in 2005: Indian intelligence reports
Chandan Nandy
02 September 2013, 11:16 AM IST

A few days after China conducted atomic blasts in Tibet in March 2005 to divert the Yarlung Tsangpo, or the Brahmaputra, Indian spy planes and satellites spotted the transport of nuclear missiles and suspected fissile material over the Karakoram highway connecting China with Pakistan.

The Times of India had earlier reported China’s ambitious plan to divert the course of the Brahmaputra from south to north in Tibet’s Moutou and Great Bend regions in March 2005. But what made the transfer of nuclear missiles – possibly to locations within Pakistan – significant from the Indian perspective was the movement of road-mobile, short-range ballistic missiles, Dongfeng 11, also known as M-11 missiles via the Karakoram highway in 1995.

Highly classified Indian intelligence reports suggest that in March 2005, an important contingent of the People’s Liberation Army, carrying 11 transporter erector launcher (TEL) laden with short-range nuclear missiles was photographed by spy planes of the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) moving through the Karakoram Pass. The Indian security establishment estimated the PLA troops, led by a brigadier rank officer, numbering about 550.

Typically, Chinese TELs are 16-wheeled behemoths that have integrated prime movers that can carry, elevate to firing position and launch or multiple missles. These vehicles are employed to fire surface-to-air as well as surface-to-surface missiles. The Chinese TELs are compatible for firing the Dongfeng 11 and some of the missile’s more improved and lethal versions that have been deployed in different parts of China and shared with Pakistan.

Besides Pakistan, China was recently suspected to have provided North Korea with at least six TELs which was part of Beijing’s covert arms proliferation efforts and therefore stood in breach of United Nations Security Council resolution 1874.

The movement of the TELs, believed to have been designed and built by the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation, which is the PLA’s main mobile-missile producer, on the Karakoram highway took place just before the then Chinese premier Wen Jiabao’s visit to Islamabad in April 2005 when the two countries signed the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation. At that time, China had also agreed to establish a facility to produce land attack cruise missiles (LACMs) for the Pakistanis.

Indian intelligence, according to National Security Council reports, also learnt that the LACMs were tested in September 2005 and were suspected to have been transported from China which helped the Pakistanis build a ballistic missile manufacturing facility near Rawalpindi for the Shaheen-1, a variant of the Dongfeng 9 Chinese missiles.

Although the Indian security establishment is well aware of China’s missile proliferation efforts in the region, including providing assistance to Pakistan in strengthening its nuclear missile programme, the atomic blasts to divert the Brahmaputra in Tibet and the transport of nuclear warheads via the Karakoram highway reflect a failure of New Delhi’s diplomacy in containing the threat from its largest neighbour.

[SaiK]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home ... 340408.cms
what else they are planting on the moon?

[Selamat Pagi]

PLA Army Aviation Thunder Aerobatic Team - WZ-10 demo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HG99_A20Rt0

[vic]

Mass import of Telecom equipment from China means there is perhaps nothing China does not know about our wheeler dealers err politicians. So giving up few areas in North East is no biggie till the bribes keep rolling in.

[Aditya_V]

I think China has had a Moritorium on Nuclear Tests for long time before our shakti tests, how come there were reports on Nuclear explosions to divert the Brahmaputra??. We could have used those tests to validate our designs as a response.

Is the story of Nuclear tests in 2005 true??

[kit]

The problem is not the threat per se., all nations have it ..but what the perception is and a definite policy involving economy , politics and lastly military capabilities WITH a political will to see through it .. that needs to happen. There is no finer deterrent than that.Witness Russia vs the US.

[NRao]

I think China has had a Moritorium on Nuclear Tests for long time before our shakti tests, how come there were reports on Nuclear explosions to divert the Brahmaputra??. We could have used those tests to validate our designs as a response.

Is the story of Nuclear tests in 2005 true??

Those who claimed that the Chinese conducted them also stated that they were low yield - seems to imply that no one could actually prove them to be true - I assume India was an exception and traditionally India (under MMS?) has kept real still to no matter what china does.

[kit]

I still believe it is possible to physically conduct low yield nuclear 'experiments' and remain undetected by whatever surveillance there may be out there. But the catch is the secrecy involved .. has to be something like a 'triple blind' experiment to lay off all those fancy NSA and CIA hardware and humint !

[MN Kumar]

China turns to stock market to fund navy

Chinese investors cheered the prospect of being able to invest in their country's military-industrial complex, driving the Shanghai-listed shares of China Shipbuilding up by the daily limit of 10 percent.

Capital markets have funded wars for centuries. Now China's military is turning to the stock market to help propel its ambitious naval expansion plans.

Beijing's military spend, at USD 166 bn last year, is second only to the US. The country has been ramping up its naval prowess amid territorial disputes in the South China Sea and other surrounding waters. But with its largest defence contractors still predominantly state-owned, China wants to push them closer to the private sector and on to public markets to foster their growth.

Launching what it described as the start of a new push to use capital markets to fund China's defence industry, state-controlled China Shipbuilding Industry Co, the country's biggest shipbuilder, said it would raise Rmb8.5bn (USD 1.4bn) through a private placement of shares to buy production facilities and equipment to make warships.

Chinese investors cheered the prospect of being able to invest in their country's military-industrial complex, driving the Shanghai-listed shares of China Shipbuilding up by the daily limit of 10 percent. Shares of other companies expected to benefit, such as Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries, a maker of large steel structures, also surged.

The company itself was quick to tout the lucrative nature of military assets to investors. "This will expand the range of investable assets in our capital market and will allow investors to enjoy the returns generated by high-end military products," it said in a statement to the stock exchange.

Other Chinese defence groups have injected assets in their listed subsidiaries over the past year, but China Shipbuilding's move is one of the biggest to date.

It added: "Given our national strategy to protect our maritime rights, our company's military-related duties will continue to expand quickly. To satisfy the need for the development and manufacture of a new generation of weapons and equipment, we urgently need large-scale technological improvements and need to expand our financing channels."

China has ramped up its military spending since the 1980s, with its official defence budget increasing at a double-digit pace every year but one over the past two decades. China's spending is still less than a quarter of the US, which spent USD 682bn, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

In recent years, China has placed extra emphasis on building up its blue-water navy - a force capable of operating far from the country's shores. Mired in territorial disputes in the East China Sea with Japan and in the South China Sea with countries including the Philippines and Vietnam, China has started to deploy naval ships more regularly to patrol what it defines as its sovereign waters. In 2011, China launched its first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, though it was built on an unfinished hull acquired from Ukraine. Analysts believe it is only a matter of time before China produces its first indigenous carrier.

The China Securities Journal, a leading government-run financial newspaper, said the stock market penetration by companies in China's military industry was very low. While about 80 per cent of the assets of the world's top 100 military companies are publicly listed, only 30 per cent of the assets of China's top 10 military companies have been listed, it said.

For China's beleaguered shipbuilding industry, hit hard by overcapacity and slowing economic growth, the start of more military projects offers some consolation. "Military spending is classic counter-cyclical support in a downturn," said Jon Windham, head of Asia transport research at Barclays. "It's simply a more stable part of the business and one they want to talk about more because the commercial side is in free fall."

China Shipbuilding's private placement structure is complex. It is issuing shares to two sibling companies, Wuchang Shipbuilding and Dalian Shipbuilding, to raise the funds, and is then using that money to acquire some of those two company's military assets. Initially, these assets had been stripped out of the listed company when China Shipbuilding went public.

[Guddu]

The US game is not in helping india but in tying India down ., arming pakistan is only one process in the chain.The want india to confront china just like pakistan is used as proxy by china against india.It is not in india s interests to be in the american camp at all ..100% . A neutered india will never forgive the political party or dynasty that even deigns to do it. Americans are the most chaloo of the whole lot .. which they have and will prove again.

US foreign policy is based on balance of power...so if pak is very weak...they are strengthened with arms to balance with India somewhat. same between India and China, same between Syria and the rebels...

[ashi]

HQ-9 double shot

[Avinandan]

HQ-9 double shot

Thanks for the video.Pretty cool stuff, never seen double shot before .

[svinayak]

中国杀手 - This needs to added to all Chinese forum

烈火中国杀手

[NRao]

Want to See China’s Latest Top-Secret Military Site? Just Google It

[TSJones]

Actually the Chinese are camera crazy. Everybody and their dog has a cell phone with a camera and they snap pictures! They are very proud of their military and love to show their latest and greatest. Just like everybody else I guess. Which is OK. It's not like both India and the US don't have spy sats and intel agencies within and over China as do the Chinses vice versa.

[VinodTK]

PLA’s drills seen as response to India’s infrastructure moves

Several military commands of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), including those handling the western section of the border with India and the South China Sea, have in recent days conducted a series of high-profile live-ammunition drills, according to State media reports.

The drills were held as a top official of the new PLA leadership urged the army to “boost combat preparedness” and internal discipline through a “mass line” campaign, and take place amid recent tensions along the border with India and involving maritime disputes. Over the weekend, troops of the Lanzhou Military Area Command, which holds responsibility for the Aksai Chin region and the disputed western section of the border where there has recently been a spurt in tensions over incursion incidents, conducted “an actual-troop live-ammunition drill on the [Tibetan] plateau”, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

A regiment conducted a live-ammunition drill at an altitude exceeding 4,500 metres “in a bid to temper the troop’s combat capability in high-altitude regions”.

Analysts in New Delhi often see military drills as signals or responses to India’s own moves to strengthen border infrastructure. The latest round of drills takes place after a series of reports of incursion incidents along the western section of the border.

While officials attribute the incidents to differing perceptions of the Line of Actual Control (LoAC) which sees troops on both sides routinely patrolling up to their overlapping claim lines, some Indian officials say China has in recent months stepped up patrols to strengthen its claims in certain areas. This has resulted in several stand-offs, most notably at Depsang on April 15, which took three weeks to resolve and cast a shadow on the Chinese Premier’s May visit to India.

Troops in the Xinjiang military region also last week conducted live-fire drills at night, State media reported.

Separately, a fleet of the PLA Navy last week returned after conducting a 16-day training session in the West Pacific, which took place against the backdrop of tensions with Japan over disputed East China Sea islands.

The drill involved “comprehensive offense and defense exercises, ship-helicopter coalition antisubmarine exercises, and ship-helicopter cooperative escort drills, as well as anti-terrorism and anti-piracy drills”, Xinhua reported.

The exercises take place amid calls from the new PLA leadership to boost internal discipline and preparedness.

Last week, Fan Changlong, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, told troops during an inspection in southern Guangdong to put in force a “mass line” campaign “to build a strong military and boost the PLA combat preparedness”. The campaign is aimed at tackling graft and improving discipline.

[Cosmo_R]

" American drones “are not designed to enter into contested or denied air space,” Mr. Easton said. “So they would be unable to fight in any conflict with China.”

China, on the other hand, is building drones, also called unmanned aerial vehicles, precisely to operate in contested spaces. “It’s a very useful instrument for safeguarding maritime sovereignty,” said Xu Guangyu, a retired major general and director of the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association. “China will gradually step up its use of U.A.V.’s in this area.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/21/world ... es.html?hp

There are some implications for India's MSC here. Don't know exactly what but doesn't sound good.

[Philip]

http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90786/8406448.html

Development of China's fourth-generation nuclear submarine completed
(People's Daily Online) 14:33, September 22, 2013


At the recent 2013 Four Northeastern Provinces Cooperation Leaders' Conference held in Ordos, Inner Mongolia, Tan Zuojun, vice governor of Liaoning Province and former general manager of China State Shipbuilding Corporation, revealed that development of China's fourth-generation nuclear submarines and other high-tech weapons and items of equipment in the Northeastern Provinces of China had been completed. The news attracted considerable attention.

The fourth generation nuclear submarine features high performance and low noise

Military expert Du Wenlong pointed out that the main characteristic of the fourth generation nuclear submarine would be its high performance. Compared with earlier submarines, modern attack submarines differ significantly in offensive power, possessing both anti-submarine capabilities and also strong potential for anti-ship action and attacks on land-based targets. He pointed out that the fourth generation nuclear submarines of the United States and Russia already have these capabilities; China's fourth-generation nuclear submarines too will be equipped with the appropriate torpedoes, along with missiles suitable for use against other sea-going or land-based targets. In addition, the Chinese submarine will have low noise output, a key indicator for measuring a modern nuclear submarine's underwater survival capacity, as well as its ability to remain hidden during maneuvers, or undetected while launching an attack. He pointed out that the fourth-generation nuclear submarine will possess effective noise damping features, such as a quieter nuclear power plant with less vibration, and a more advanced hull muffler system, so that it will be difficult to detect even if within range of enemy sonar.

On the question when the fourth-generation nuclear submarine will enter service, Du Wenlong said that completion of development and completion of construction are two different phases - the cycle from completion of development to manufacturing, and then to fitting out and launch, can be very long, perhaps several years. Progress is determined by two factors: one is technical indicators, and the other is strategic need.

A significant enhancement of nuclear counterattack capability

Analysts believe that continual development of attack submarines and strategic nuclear submarines at times of peace, adding better performance and greater combat ability, can enhance strategic deterrence capability. China's strategic nuclear forces are weapons to deter third parties from becoming involved in local conflicts. China firmly adheres to the principle of non-first use of nuclear weapons, but the existence of strategic nuclear submarines will give China a stronger voice and more room for maneuver in the case of any crisis. In addition, Song Xiaojun points out that the United States, Russia, Britain and France all possess modern strategic nuclear submarines as a symbol of their status as 'Great Powers'; it is natural that China should be unwilling to lag behind.

Videoclips:http://english.people.com.cn/102774/8403326.html
New model of indigenous surface-to-air missiles testfired in NW China (2)
(Xinhua) 20:18, September 17, 2013

[kit]

" American drones “are not designed to enter into contested or denied air space,” Mr. Easton said. “So they would be unable to fight in any conflict with China.”

China, on the other hand, is building drones, also called unmanned aerial vehicles, precisely to operate in contested spaces. “It’s a very useful instrument for safeguarding maritime sovereignty,” said Xu Guangyu, a retired major general and director of the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association. “China will gradually step up its use of U.A.V.’s in this area.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/21/world ... es.html?hp

There are some implications for India's MSC here. Don't know exactly what but doesn't sound good.

The Chinese are into development of an entire spectrum of UAVs right from platoon level to long range recon/strike ..and making significant progress as well. Janes and FG were reporting that the Chinese are well into becoming one of the most networked and technically advanced services in the world.

[NRao]

Forget UAVs, 5th gen plane, Air craft carrier, China is now going for THE stuff and I see an end to India now.

China's $8 billion plan to rival Hollywood

[Kartik]

China has certified 5 pilots and signals officers for carrier operations. Over 100 flights of the Su-33 copy, the J-15 were carried out during Liaoning's latest sea trials

China carrier flight tests gather steam

[ashi]

HQ-9 won Turkey's bid

Turkey dismisses NATO allies’ bids, selects Chinese firm for air defense system tender

Ankara has granted a long-awaited tender for long-range missile and air defense systems to Chinese contenders, dismissing bids from major NATO allies as the United States, France and Italy.

With the decision, announced today following a meeting of the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries' executive council, which is headed by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Ankara has approved the lowest offer despite worries about the Chinese system’s ultimate compatibility with NATO-owned early warning assets.

CPMIEC (China Precision Machinery Export-Import Corp.) submitted an offer for its HQ-9 that included co-production solutions – which was requested by Turkish authorities – at a reported $3 billion.

The other bidders were the U.S. partnership of Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, offering the Patriot air defense system; Russia’s Rosoboronexport, marketing the S-300; and the Italian-French consortium Eurosam, maker of the SAMP/T Aster 30.

Turkey presently has no long-range air-defense systems. The $4 billion program, dubbed the T-LORAMIDS, is being designed to counter both enemy aircraft and missiles.

HQ-9 double shot

[mody]

Another confirmation of the above news. The news says chinese FD-2000 missiles system.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/u-sanctio ... 19996.html

[ashish raval]

^^ finally U.S. wants to inspect Chinese defence systems then via its ally Turkey.

[Austin]

Cost would have been the major factor in choosing HQ-9 , else Aster or some modified S-300 variant would have been a better buy ....... the fact that Turkey choose to go with non-Nato/Western system inspite of warning from NATO not to purchase non-western system due to compatiability issue would mean some strategic consideration in this or just to snub NATO.