China threatens to invade Taiwan
But while many focus on China’s navy
The real threat may be something entirely different
Welcome to China Uncensored, I’m Chris Chappell.
This episode is sponsored by PC-Doctor Toolbox.
Protect your PC from software crashes,
hardware failures, and the kind of glitches that make your life miserable.
So, the Chinese Communist Party desperately wants to conquer Taiwan.
Over the past year, the Chinese regime has sent wave after wave of
jets near Taiwan. An attempted Chinese invasion is looking more and more likely.
The Economist has called Taiwan the most dangerous place on Earth.
Even more dangerous than a Walmart on Black Friday.
Many US analysts focus on the rapid expansion
of the Chinese Communist Party’s navy, known as the People’s Liberation Army Navy.
Yes, the PLA Navy actually belongs to the Communist Party, not to the Chinese government.
And China now has the world’s largest navy, even bigger than the United States.
But there’s a problem with focusing on China’s navy. It’s easy for US military strategists to
imagine a scenario where China sends its fleet to Taiwan, where it can be easily
picked off by American torpedoes and missiles. So nothing to worry about, right?
But Taiwan faces a much larger threat from China.
One that the US would have a much harder time handling.
I’ll tell you what it is right after the break.
Welcome back.
The Chinese navy might not be the biggest threat to Taiwan.
Taiwan is an island less than 100 miles off the Chinese coast.
Think about this—would the US need its massive naval fleet in an invasion of Cuba?
We’d probably use other tactics.
That’s why, according to the non-profit
Nuclear Threat Initiative , we could be facing a Taiwan Missile Crisis.
China has thousands of missiles permanently pointed at Taiwan.
That’s not including the capabilities of the PLA Rocket Force.
China could pulverize Taiwan’s air defenses, runways, and communications.
That would free the way for Chinese bombers, aircraft, and drones.
The main purpose would be to pave a path for Chinese troops
into Taiwan. Either by parachute or helicopter.
The Chinese Communist Party is definitely focusing on its paratroopers and helicopters.
“Exercises demonstrate that Chinese airborne forces…are undertaking more challenging jumps,
including at night, in coastal areas, and even over the water.”
According to state-run media reports,
China has devoted its most advanced bomber, the Y-20, to paratrooper training.
Backing up the paratroopers will be China’s enormous fleet
of transport and attack helicopters.
This report by a Russian expert on the PLA is called the Celestial Rotary-Wing
Empire. It claims China has 1,500 helicopters.
And according to Lyle Goldstein , the director of Asia Engagement at Defense Priorities,
“Between parachute and heliborne forces, China could quite reasonably hope to put
50,000 soldiers on the island in the first wave and well over 100,000 in the first 24 hours.”
That won’t be easy. But “Chinese strategists are acutely aware that these first assault waves
will suffer very high casualties, but they consider this a necessary cost to obtain victory.”
They call that the Zapp Brannigan strategy. These troops could further be resupplied
by the helicopter fleets or even heavy drones developed specifically for that purpose.
What this means is an invasion of Taiwan might not
be a sea battle with a possible beach invasion, but a bloody infantry fight in Taiwanese cities.
And it looks like this is exactly what the Chinese Communist Party has been preparing for.
They’ve been training soldiers for “stealthy insertion,
night operations, sniper tactics, securing hard targets, urban combat, and mountain operations”.
They’ve also invested in small, maneuverable craft like this amphibious all-terrain vehicle.
“These vessels have speed, stealth, and low cost, but perhaps their most notable virtue
is their small size, allowing them to be carried and launched by almost
any civilian vessel, including ships of China’s enormous fishing fleet.”
Meanwhile, the US has been investing in expensive high-tech ships that take too long to be built,
as we discussed on a recent episode of America Uncovered, Has China’s Navy
Already BEATEN the US Navy? I’ll put a link to that below if you want to check it out.
All this is to say, the best thing the US could do
is to prevent a Chinese invasion from happening in the first place.
And the US can do that by showing strong support for Taiwan, and cutting China off from US money.
Because the alternative
is a bloody war the Chinese Communist Party will have no problem fighting.
And this episode is sponsored by PC-Doctor Toolbox.
Computer and software crashes, hardware failures, and general computer slowdowns are way too common.
And they can happen at the worst times—like when you’re at a business meeting,
or when China is in the middle of invading Taiwan. It could happen anytime.
And that’s why if you’re using a PC, you should also be using PC-Doctor Toolbox.
Stop crashes and other system problems before they happen.
And we have a 50% off discount just for China Uncensored viewers:
Use the link and coupon code below to take advantage of this limited time offer.
I’m Chris Chappell. Thanks for watching China Uncensored.