China has deployed more amphibious weapons in coastal cities across the 110-mile wide strait that separates
China from Taiwan, according to reports of recent satellite images. The images published in Canadian
MILITARY magazine Kanwa Asian Defence show that more Type 05 vehicles had been deployed to China’s Eastern Theatre Command, according to the South China Morning Post. The Type 05 is a family of amphibious tracked armoured fighting vehicles developed for the navy marine corps of the People's Liberation Army. It comes amid rising tensions between Taiwan and China. China’s communist rulers seek to annex the island of 23 million, which functions like any other nation with its own
Democratic government and military but lacks widespread recognition as an independent state because of opposition from Beijing.
Beijing has warned it may resort to force if Taipei, which rejects Chinese sovereignty claims, resists its attempts to unify. “The PLA ground forces want to play an active role in the Taiwan issue because so far their weapon systems are powerful enough to attack Taiwan without the help of
missile force,” said Andrei Chang, editor of Kanwa Asian Defence.