Technological Momentum in China’s Border Defense

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China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has strengthened its power and management in border defense by developing new types of equipment that can be used in all environments, including those with extremes of temperature and topography. The developments can be used in water, in the air or on land. The equipment includes a satellite early warning system that can be used to monitor the border areas in all environments, according to official media reports.

The satellite system is planned in some border areas that are in dispute or are difficult to enter and patrol.  A surveillance camera network has also been built in border zones.

The informatization and mechanization of equipment, vehicles and monitoring methods of the Army’s border defense will give an early-warning of any risks to security as well as overcoming previous blind spots, Song Zhongping, a military expert was quoted as saying by the Global Times.

Increasing the automation of will include using drones and tracking vehicles to conduct patrols and setting up unmanned monitoring systems, which means border regions will come under continuous monitoring and control, according to economictimes.indiatimes.com.

The army has deployed a new patrol boat which is made of non-metallic materials. The craft has a top speed of 40 km per hour and can resist ice collisions.

A type of heavy scout vehicle, called the “wild ox,” capable of accommodating 17 full-armed soldiers, has been deployed to a border defense regiment in Southwest China’s Yunnan Province, which shares a border with three countries. Besides a BeiDou satellite navigation system, akin to that of US Global Position System (GPS), the vehicle also has a real-time communication system installed. The scout vehicle also has water filters, a kitchen and a toilet so it can conduct patrols in tropical environments.