Special Operations Force | |
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PLA Special Operations Forces ensign
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Active | 1988 - Present |
Country | People's Republic of China |
Branch | People's Liberation Army Ground Force |
Type | Special forces |
Role |
Counter-terrorism Military intelligence Special operations (Land-, air- and sea-deployable) |
Size |
Classified Analysts believe current size is 7,000 ~ 14,000 troops |
Engagements | Counter-piracy operations |
The People's Liberation Army Special Operations Forces (simplified Chinese: 中国特种部队; traditional Chinese: 中國特種部隊; pinyin: Zhōngguó tèzhǒng bùduì) is the Special forces branch of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Ground Force. It specialises in rapid reaction combat in a limited regional war under high-tech conditions, commando operations, counter-terrorism, and intelligence gathering. Although the size of the Special Operations Forces is classified, it is estimated to number 7,000 ~ 14,000 troops.
The PLA first became interested in modern special warfare in the mid-1980s when it was shifting from the "people's war" to "fighting a local war under hi-tech conditions." The PLA planners believed that the next war would be a short, fast-pace conflict on the periphery rather than a total war on Chinese territories, and conventional infantry-orientated ground forces in their mass numbers could no longer meet the requirements.
On 23 December 2008, their first publicly known mission was to accompany three Chinese warships in protecting and escorting commercial ships against the Somali pirates, in cooperation with other nations as part of a UN mandate.