Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

China's container ship fleet and Taiwan's security (MUST READ, chinese sneak attack?)
The American Thinker ^ | April 11th, 2005 | Frederick W. Stakelbeck, Jr.

Posted on 04/11/2005 10:43:31 AM PDT by CitadelArmyJag

China's container ship fleet and Taiwan's security April 11th, 2005

China is busily building a fleet of the largest container ships the world has ever seen. That is a boon for its export trade and economic efficiency. But like the Trojan Horse of ancient Greek civilization, the fleet could potentially be used by China in a spectacular, lightening invasion of Taiwan. Could the hollow hulls and empty decks of Chinese container ships carry infantry and mechanized divisions for a devastating attack on Taiwan, securing the island before the U.S. could respond?

The thought of mammoth Chinese container ships carrying an amphibious invasion force across the Strait of Taiwan is certainly frightening. But the capability for just such an invasion is slowly being put in place.

The Chinese have plans to build several 90,000 ton-plus container ships capable of carrying 8,530-TEUs (Twenty Feet Equivalent Units).* In an agreement announced in November 2004, Chinese shipbuilder Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group) Co., Ltd. announced it will deliver 4-5 of the giant container ships to the China Shipping Group by October 2008. When completed, the new ships will surpass the Republic of Korea’s 8,000-TEU as the largest container ships in the world.

Supplementing increased construction and advances in the container ship industry have been developments in China’s amphibious capabilities. The People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) is building amphibious ships at a breakneck pace. The ships include nine large Yuting 072- II class LSTH; the Yunshu class LSM; a new 64 meter LCU; a number of medium landing ships; and the construction of LSDs and LPDs with flight decks for attack helicopters. Solidifying China’s stranglehold on the world’s merchant fleet is the country’s rapid ascension as a world leader in commercial ship repair and conversion services. These complex projects can now be completed at a number of shipyards throughout China. Its largest ship repair organization, the China Ocean Shipping Company (COSCO) Shipyard, operates the Nantong shipyard near Shanghai, which is increasingly handling tanker, container and bulk carrier repairs and conversions. Separately, the Dailan and Guangzhou shipyards, among the country’s largest repair facilities, also expect rapid growth and increased investment in the near future.

The largest producer of ship containers in the world is also a Chinese company. China International Marine Containers (CIMC) ranks as the world leader in container manufacturing, with over 40 percent of the international container market. These containers can be custom built to specifications with louvered vents and electric power added to make a working, livable environment that is virtually sound-proof. Containers can also be armored and include partitions to conceal individuals or large items.

Entranced by economic opportunity, the Taiwanese are inadvertently making a possible Chinese container ship invasion a reality. In May 2004, ground was broken for construction of the first container center at the Port of Taipei. The new center is expected to save several hundred million dollars in transport costs and make the port an attractive location for investment. Located at the mouth of the Danshuei River in northern Taiwan, the Port of Taipei is one-hundred and thirty-four miles from Fuzhou Harbor in mainland China.

Further improvements to the Port of Taipai’s transportation infrastructure are scheduled for completion in 2008 – the same year that the last of the great 90,000 ton container ships will be delivered to the China Shipping Group. Included in these improvements will be the completion of the Bali-Wugu section of an east-west expressway. This will allow for the easy transport of containers from the Port of Taipei via the expressway, or a link with Chiang Kai-shek International Airport via the West Coast Highway, which is currently being widened.

A Chinese invasion of Taiwan has been compared by some to the allied invasion of Normandy and McArthur’s landing at Inchon during the Korean War. The D-Day Normandy invasion of 1944 transported 176,000 amphibious troops; used three airborne divisions; 10,000 aircraft, 136 warships, 3,000 landing craft and 2,000 support ships. Available intelligence reports suggest that the Chinese can assemble 15,000 amphibious troops, three airborne divisions, 3,300 aircraft, 60 warships and 300 landing craft for an invasion of Taiwan. In addition, a support force of 50,000 ground troops of the Chinese 31st Army Group now deployed at the Nanjing Military Region could be made available for an invasion with another 250,000 troops loaded onto container ships for an assault on Taiwan. According to Wang Jisi, Director of the Chinese Institute of Strategy at the Central Party School, “the danger of war truly exists. We are not a paper tiger. We are a real tiger.”

In theory, a covert assault using Chinese container ships is possible. But like the Normandy invasion, most, if not all, of the operational and contingency planning involved in such a large-scale amphibious invasion would have to be precise and error-free. A fleet of container ships would have to unload men and material in an extremely fast, cohesive manner, probably under constant fire from Taiwanese ground, navel and air forces.

Loading docks in the Port of Taipei would need to be cleared for immediate military offloading operations. Major roads leading out of the port would have to be secured by airborne units of the Chinese 43rd, 44th and 45th divisions or advance units of a special operations force (SOF) attached to the invading amphibious force.

Once secured, the port would require continuous patrolling to propel a retaliatory naval or air assault on container ships unloading at the port. Air cover using a combination of attack helicopters and fighters from the decks of ships in port or from airfields secured by Chinese airborne units would be necessary. The imposition of a rigorous naval shield using China’s fleet of diesel and nuclear powered submarines would be needed to diminish threats from the United States and its allies.

French Exocet SM-39 anti-ship missiles known as “carrier killers,” 3M-80 Moskit Sunburn missiles, developed by the Chinese specifically to defeat the U.S. Aegis air-defense system, or cruise missiles launched from Russian-made Su-30 fighters could also be used to attack U.S. assets in the Pacific. Deployed on submarines, fighters, frigates, or mainland China, cruise missiles could inflict considerable damage and innumerable casualties on U.S. Naval Forces in the early hours of a conflict. This would effectively mitigate an overwhelming response from the U.S. and prompt a tactical regrouping of U.S. forces for a coordinated counteroffensive that could take several weeks or months to organize.

A southern Chinese invasion force made up of container ships and Chinese naval support ships could land near the ancient city of Tainan situated on the southwestern coastal plains of Taiwan. As one of the island’s largest cities with a population of approximately 700,000 residents, Tainan’s transportation system includes a major airport that, if secured by Chinese airborne units, would allow for accelerated troop movements north. The Tainan Airport, a public facility as well as an air base, is well-known to Chinese military strategists. Railway lines and highways leading north to Taipei already exist and are large enough to handle large supply trucks, tanks and armored vehicles.

Adding credibility to the hypothesis of a possible Chinese container-based invasion of Taiwan, the United States itself is now considering using container ships in support of naval operations, and plans to explore the conversion of container ships for military purposes. Working with Maersk Line Ltd., the U.S. Navy is considering its Maritime Prepositioning Force (MPF) Future Program with a modified S-class commercial container ship. The 1,140 feet long ship is designed to offload cargo for 6,000 troops and maintain a flight deck for the V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft. Working with architectural firm Gibbs & Cox and ship conversion company Norshipco, the proposed ship will be outfitted with ramps, a loading platform and stern and bow thrusters. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2007. Hovercrafts would be used to deliver cargo to shore.

China has embarked on a determined mission to surpass both Japan and South Korea as the world’s leading shipbuilder. The Chinese can now offer state-of-the-art shipbuilding, repair and conversion services as a result of increased domestic and foreign investment in maritime modernization projects. With improved shipbuilding production methods, modern capital equipment for its shipyards, and significant progress in the areas of ship design, China’s shipbuilding industry deserves the attention of the U.S. and its Pacific allies as a possible national security threat.

Would China undertake a container-based invasion of Taiwan? This is an intriguing question which merits our attention as China approaches superpower status.

_________

*The unit TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) is used to express the relative number of containers based on the equivalent length of a 20' container. For example, 100 containers of 20' is 100 TEUs, while 100 containers of 40' is 200 TEUs, Export 911, http://www.export911.com/e911/ship/conShip.htm.

Frederick W. Stakelbeck, Jr., is a freelance journalist residing in Philadelphia

Frederick W. Stakelbeck, Jr.


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: asia; china; commiepinkochinese; containerships; geopolitics; navy; taiwan
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-92 next last
To: CitadelArmyJag

Our most effective response to a Chinese invasion of Taiwan would be to tell them that if they do it not one Chinese product will be allowed into the US. It would hurt them a lot worse than it would hurt us. There are billions of other impoverished third worlders that would be happy to manufacture products for us, but there aren't billions of affluent Americans waiting to buy Chinese goods if we refuse to.


61 posted on 04/11/2005 1:19:06 PM PDT by elmer fudd
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Dark Wing

The containers will be off-loaded by levitation.


62 posted on 04/11/2005 1:41:51 PM PDT by Thud
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 31 | View Replies]

To: Waterleak
"As if our satellites can't see that. Stealth technology - we have it, they don't."

Oh yea, I have all the confidence in the world in our vaunted intelligence community!

63 posted on 04/11/2005 2:47:20 PM PDT by paleocon patriarch ("Never attribute to a conspiracy that which can be explained by incompetence.")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: evilthatmendo

Unfortunately the Chinese are smart enough to wait until we have potus like clinton (or worse, if that's possible....) so they won't have to worry about us sticking up for them....


64 posted on 04/11/2005 4:15:47 PM PDT by logic ("All that is required for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing......")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies]

To: brooklyn dave
I don't think the Chinese aspirations are that great yet, but this Taiwan thing is getting more and more ominous. At present, our military is better than theirs but the economic fall out that would happen if relations between the two countries got totally antagonistic would be horrendous. Would China pull out it's assets in the American stock market? Would the US pull out economically from China. Somehow I fear that we have more to lose than they do.

Our economy is the least of our worries. It works both ways. If China shut themselves out they would not make any more money off the crap they sell to us.

65 posted on 04/11/2005 4:17:24 PM PDT by Paul_Denton (Get the UN out of the US and US out of the UN!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: Jeff Head
It's a good theory, but the Chinese are more likely to use North Koreans as a hired gun for a one way mission. If one can link Saudi money to Al Queda or Sinn Fein to the IRA, then it's not hard to imagine North Korean SOF (or ex-SOF) soldiers as mercenaries or gulag prisoners radicalized for the purpose of murder and mayhem.

BTW, the Trojan ship idea is not new. Before container ships, thoughts were focused on using a converted oil tankers to house a fighting force.

The Soviets used converted passenger aircraft for paratroopers.

Both World War 1 and 2 had "Q" ships made to sucker submarines.

There are many examples of engineering civilian vehicles for transport into mobility and surprise for the military. With the recent unpleasantness for tyranny in Iraq, both Chinese and North Korean leaderships have been given an education on the use and scale of bribery. Perhaps the real "shock and awe" is what little it took to turn military generals from their sworn loyalty to a dictator into a champion of change.

Many may not think the Trojan ship plan will work, but it's a real threat that would have to be countered. Devils are not divisive against each other, but mankind is. That's why Revelations speak of 3 reigning anti-christian organizations: the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet. I could explain more, but I don't think I have enough time right now.
66 posted on 04/11/2005 4:44:24 PM PDT by SaltyJoe (Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 21 | View Replies]

To: SaltyJoe
The historical prcedent is there. We have hundreds of these ships near our coasts at any ont time. In my Series I have the Chinese convert one group of ships as tatcical missile launchers, disguising the launchers as containers. From well off the cooast, on our "Pearle Harbor Day", they launch hundreds and hundreds of tactical missiles (non-nuclear) at us and destroy a lot of infrastructure, the White House, Capitol, shipbuilding works, etc. all along both major coastrs and even in the Gulf at Pascagoola.

This happens after an escalation in the Mid East with Iran and Syria, and after the North Koreans go south, which both stretch us very thin. World War III.

67 posted on 04/11/2005 5:20:38 PM PDT by Jeff Head (www.dragonsfuryseries.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 66 | View Replies]

To: CitadelArmyJag

They must have a beachhead first. Once they have that they can use any means they want to flood the island with troops. But, they won't lead with container ships. Makes no sense.


68 posted on 04/11/2005 5:25:43 PM PDT by RightWhale (50 trillion sovereign cells working together in relative harmony)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Jeff Head
In my Dragon's Fury Series they made alterations to create jump jet carriers, missile launchers, and amphibious assault ships.

In World War II, Britain built aircraft carriers by putting flight decks on cargo ships. If the Chinese had a bunch of cargo ships with helipads and refueling facilities, how many troops per hour per ship could they ferry between ships just offshore and a beachhead onshore?

You gotta think there's a bunch of Chinese officers trying hard to figure out "outside the box" ways to do this, possibly involving unconventional attacks, use of "5th column" elements prepositioned in Taiwan, chemical warfare, or next-generation weapons that we don't know about (yet)

69 posted on 04/11/2005 6:09:08 PM PDT by SauronOfMordor (What does the wolf care how many sheep there be?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 21 | View Replies]

To: Daus
Wouldn't a ship like this need to be unloaded with shore-side cranes? Put's a crimp in the whole invasion theory, no?

How hard would it be to build ships with structural fittings to be able to quickly install one or more cranes on short notice?

70 posted on 04/11/2005 6:12:27 PM PDT by SauronOfMordor (What does the wolf care how many sheep there be?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 41 | View Replies]

To: Calpernia; Velveeta

Ping


71 posted on 04/11/2005 6:20:03 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (Airspeed, altitude, or brains. Two are required to successfully complete a flight.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SauronOfMordor
See This Thread...and then look at posts 79 and 80 thereon. Wierd.
72 posted on 04/11/2005 6:58:40 PM PDT by Jeff Head (www.dragonsfuryseries.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 69 | View Replies]

To: Polybius
They would not commit said ships until the ROCAF was subdued I am sure.

In addition, they would probably try and use RORO capabnility and take dock facilities intact if they used such a scenario.

73 posted on 04/11/2005 6:59:57 PM PDT by Jeff Head (www.dragonsfuryseries.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 55 | View Replies]

To: Jeff Head
They would not commit said ships until the ROCAF was subdued I am sure. In addition, they would probably try and use RORO capabnility and take dock facilities intact if they used such a scenario.

Russian Diesel Subs May Go to Taiwan

74 posted on 04/11/2005 7:14:46 PM PDT by Polybius
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 73 | View Replies]

To: Polybius

The Russians have already sold 12 of these to the Chinese Communists I believe.


75 posted on 04/11/2005 7:25:10 PM PDT by Jeff Head (www.dragonsfuryseries.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 74 | View Replies]

To: KylaStarr; Cindy; StillProud2BeFree; nw_arizona_granny; Velveeta; Dolphy; appalachian_dweller; ...

ping


76 posted on 04/11/2005 7:28:45 PM PDT by Calpernia (Breederville.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 71 | View Replies]

To: Calpernia

I appreciate this ping Calpernia.


77 posted on 04/11/2005 8:11:05 PM PDT by Cindy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 76 | View Replies]

To: CitadelArmyJag

China is beginning to get on my nerves.


78 posted on 04/11/2005 8:13:46 PM PDT by the invisib1e hand (In Honor of Terri Schiavo. http://209.245.58.70/frosty65/ Let it load and have the sound on.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Strategerist
Agreed. The Taiwan Strait would be heavily mined before any invasion fleet from the PRC got half way across.

If the PRC tried to dock a "Trojan Horse" container ship in a Taiwanese harbor, the results would be disastrous for them.

79 posted on 04/11/2005 8:29:20 PM PDT by BIGLOOK (I once opposed keelhauling but recently have come to my senses.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 53 | View Replies]

To: Calpernia

Thanks for the ping!


80 posted on 04/11/2005 9:09:47 PM PDT by Alamo-Girl
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 76 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-92 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson