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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
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To: Jeff Head
Just a thought: If the PLA's Navy were to take fishing junks, throw some aluminum foil inside, stack some propane burners to look like multi funnels, Taiwan would burn off a lot of missiles during the hours of darkness.
(Hey Chicoms, if you use this idea, can I get a discount at Wal-mart? Just asking)
81 posted on 04/11/2005 9:49:19 PM PDT by investigateworld (Another California Refugee in Oregon)
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To: Jeff Head
The attack is so overt and so easily traceable that the US would no doubt retaliate in a way to unbalance the CCP strangle hold on China. Bordering countries don't exactly recognize the Chinese as good neighbors. A counter-strike is too much of a real threat against the CCP:

1) Tibetan uprising and Islamic Jihad in China's back door.

2) 3 Gorges Dam sabotage.

3) Sink the entire COSCO shipping fleet, and/or capture what can be confiscated and used as payment for the war.

4) Raid and remove every industrial and intelligence spy syndicate that uses Chinese nationals, punish whomever does business with China. Communism doesn't foster innovation, so they need their spy network.

5) Remove Red Chinese influence from Central American (Panama Canal) by encouraging and backing Panama and all other Central and South Americans to nationalize property and business away from atheist governments that persecute religions.

6) Gather a coalition of recognition for Taiwan as an independent and sovereign nation.

7) Remove Communist China from the space race (swat their satellites from the sky).

8) Cut/infiltrate all submarine cables going into China.

As one can see, the removal of Communist Chinese influence is far easier especially if such an overt attack is carried out (that's why back pack nukes are a bigger threat than container ships...they're harder to trace). Heck, if Chinese container ships were rigged to obliterate ALL of the major cities on our coasts, with nuclear strikes no less, the retribution would be so great against Beijing that it's unlikely they'd ever considered it.

1) American cities don't decide the politics of America. Two presidential elections are proof of that. Urban politics lean very left, but we're still a republic and we never have been a democracy.

2) Our military forces aren't concentrated in a way that an enemy's strike could wipe out all of the projected strength of American might.

3) Wiping out American cities removes most of the "Culture of Death" that's far greater a threat than Sino-centric Chinese Communism. The CCP needs the culture of death to whittle away America's traditional strength.

4) Attacking Americans overtly even in a small opens retaliation invite consequences too horrific given the American mindset for "playing" war. Most having fought Americans and lived through the ordeal will say that it's better to not fight Americans.

If China really wanted to supersede America, the CCP would have to do things that would make them completely different. They wouldn't be Communist to begin with, and the attitude change needed for them to be champions would mean that the "Chinese" identity would be relegated to only describing an ethnic appearance and an historical culture. As it is, "Chinese" Communism rejects Chinese Culture. For one thing, most Chinese living in China don't know what it means to possess a brother or sister. An attitude that puts population making out of business is not friendly to any life breeding culture (especially the way traditional Chinese culture was).

Like I said before, it's a worthy enough possibility that it must be countered with more than mere theory. But the likelihood of it's happening is very improbable. Video games replace the military environment for misplaced aggression and dreams of blood lusting grandeur. International crime syndicates are a larger threat. Crime uses corruption and compromise more than naked aggression and overt patriotism and propaganda. Thus, a criminal mindset (as Communism has been equated to) is more likely to use criminals to conduct operations rather than use warships to reduce their opponents. That's how Democrats are caught collect campaign funds from non-American places of worship.

What stops Communist China from loading up all of their ships and aircraft with as many trigger pullers as possible for a one way ticket to screw up America beyond recognition (even though they could outfit a hell-rasing force to equal our US population) is that we have the 2nd Amendment. The CCP is made up of human beings not willing to win absolute power at the cost of living in the stone ages. This is where the rest of the world will put China.
82 posted on 04/11/2005 9:56:55 PM PDT by SaltyJoe (Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.)
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To: SaltyJoe

Don't forget that interdicted kooky NK missile manufacturing ship disguised as a concrete-carrying cargo vessel. Screwed up stuff.


83 posted on 04/11/2005 10:08:32 PM PDT by Bald Eagle777 (...Charles LaBella Memo? Let the Dems run from this one...)
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To: Bald Eagle777
North Korea will be more likely to grow and ship drugs than to manufacture and launch missiles. From what I've gathered, NK is already in the drug business (and not just the boner pills either).
84 posted on 04/11/2005 10:17:57 PM PDT by SaltyJoe (Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.)
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To: SaltyJoe
...not just the " # " pills....
LOL !!!!!!!!!
I've been waiting for Harbor Freight to start carrying them!!!
One thing that's not been mentioned in these equations is the Asian concept of "face". Here in the West we have difficulty understanding that concept, but the 'human waves' that attacked our positions in Korea, is just one tiny part of it.
85 posted on 04/11/2005 10:26:54 PM PDT by investigateworld (Another California Refugee in Oregon)
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To: SaltyJoe

Maybe they will attack us with wave after wave of poisoned viagra pills and mass e-mailings? It's not like that would be hitting us "below the belt" or anything, rrrrrright?

I can see it now, hundreds of millions of e-mail solicitations all with a variation on the phrase "viagra", or V%^^agra, or V^^gr%%a, etc.

"You buy now!!!!"

"Boner pills" ??? oh man, I had to smirk, LOL. That was rich ... never heard that one before.



86 posted on 04/11/2005 10:44:07 PM PDT by Bald Eagle777 (...Charles LaBella Memo? Let the Dems run from this one...)
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To: investigateworld; Bald Eagle777

Ginseng has been a traditional remedy for countering a loss of virility. Scientifically speaking, this might be an old wives' tale. But ginseng is a favorite natural remedy for many East Asians.

http://www.consumerlab.com/results/ginseng.asp



North Korea has been known for its ginseng industry:

http://www.google.com/search?num=100&hl=en&q=North+Korea+ginseng&spell=1



North Korea is also known for making a faster buck with other drugs:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=North+Korea+drugs


87 posted on 04/11/2005 10:57:37 PM PDT by SaltyJoe (Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.)
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To: KylaStarr; Cindy; StillProud2BeFree; nw_arizona_granny; Velveeta; Dolphy; appalachian_dweller; ...

ping


88 posted on 04/12/2005 4:21:39 AM PDT by Calpernia (Breederville.com)
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To: telebob

I think RO-ROs can work both ways - crane or ramp. The only reason commercial companies don't use 'em is the cost.
I need look into them more - I love commercial ships.


89 posted on 04/12/2005 6:19:51 AM PDT by Little Ray (I'm a reactionary, hirsute, gun-owning, knuckle dragging, Christian Neanderthal and proud of it!)
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To: Calpernia

Thanks for the ping!


90 posted on 04/12/2005 8:40:10 AM PDT by Alamo-Girl
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To: Bald Eagle777

I would anticipate the Chinese to use "instability"- political or other- as their stated reason for annexing Taiwan. And I imagine it would be done so rapidly we would have little time to respond. We have pledged to support Taiwan, but when it comes right down to hard realities, are we really willing to risk having a nukes lobbed at the West Coast?


91 posted on 04/12/2005 1:11:12 PM PDT by jerseygirl
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To: jerseygirl

I dunno, maybe PAC3s and some other little goodies may modify the scenario somewhat...


92 posted on 04/12/2005 2:55:41 PM PDT by Bald Eagle777 (...Charles LaBella Memo? Let the Dems run from this one...)
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