How old is that shot, anyway? These troops are holding SKS rifles and the nickle plated thingie looks like an SKS with a wood pistol grip.
I thought the SKS was long gone from army usage everywhere.
I think the photo is dated 10/05.
The photo should be fairly recent, however those are parade photos as evidenced by the uniforms and shiny jackboots. In fact, a hidden caption describes the photo as "review of the honour guard welcoming ceremony, 21 June 2005 in Beijing, for visiting Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea Lee Hae-chan." The SKS shown in this picture are for ceremonial purpose. They have been phased out long ago, but as is tradition everywhere, an earlier rifle with bayonet lug and wooden furniture remains the choice for parades (for the retro effect. the Bundeswehr is still using KAR98's). The standard infantry rifle for the PLA presently are the Type 95 bullpup and the Type 81 which is being phased out.