China is preparing armada of ferries and civilian vessels to invade Taiwan - media
The People’s Liberation Army of China does not have the military landing ships necessary to organise a large-scale naval invasion of Taiwan. However, they can be replaced by civilian vessels. These include dozens of giant landing ferries capable of carrying hundreds of armoured vehicles.
This is reported by The Telegraph, Censor.NET reports.
"Landing under fire is one of the most difficult military manoeuvres," said Ray Powell, director of the Stanford University project SeaLight, which studies activities in the South China Sea's grey zone.
The publication recalled that China has launched a two-day military exercise in the waters around Taiwan, calling it "a severe punishment for separatist activities" following the stormy inauguration speech in Taipei earlier this week by Lai Tsingde, who took the presidential oath of office.
According to Powell, civilian ferries are "not normally suited to such a mission" but could be used to transport troops across the Taiwan Strait en masse after its coastal defences are destroyed, or to overwhelm the island's military "in large numbers".
According to the newspaper, China considers Taiwan part of its territory and has vowed to take control of the island, possibly by force. US intelligence believes that Xi Jinping has ordered the Chinese NMA to be ready to seize the island by 2027.
Taiwan's armed forces are much smaller than China's, but they are protected by formidable mountainous terrain and the Taiwan Strait. China's navy already has the world's largest surface fleet and has built dozens of dual-purpose ships capable of operating in both peacetime and wartime, the newspaper writes.
Tom Shugart, an analyst at the Center for a New American Security, estimates that in 2022, China's civilian ships could dramatically increase the tonnage of military cargo that military amphibious assault ships can carry. This would allow them to transport about 300,000 troops and equipment across the Taiwan Strait in about 10 days.
Earlier it was reported that on 23 May, China launched two-day "punitive" military exercises Joint Sword 2024A, surrounding Taiwan from all sides.
Global Press Corp reported that China is preparing to attack Taiwan in early June 2024.
