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Andrew S. Erickson China's rapid development is reshaping the world in all dimensions. Chinese language open sources offer insights into these critical trends. While such materials are increasing constantly in number, diversity, and sophistication, only a fraction is available in English. The analyses available here, many based on sources not previously considered outside China, are designed to help bridge that gap--and thereby increase understanding of the most dynamic great power in the international system today.

01 March 2011

Cited in The Economist, Asia View Blog: “Setting Sail for Libya”

J.M., “Setting Sail for Libya,” Asia View Blog, The Economist, 1 March 2011.
For a fast rising power, China remains unusually shy about military deployment beyond its shores. But its decision to dispatch four military transport aircraft to Libya and a guided-missile frigate to waters nearby suggests that it might be rethinking its posture. The Ilyushin-76 […]

01 March 2011

PLA Air Force IL-76 Transport Aircraft Land in Khartoum, Sudan En Route to Libya

滚动频道首页 > 媒体新闻滚动_搜狐资讯
中国空军运输机抵达喀土穆承担撤侨任务(组图)
来源:新华网
2011年03月01日20:09
作者:穆罕默德·巴比克尔3月1日,承担撤侨任务的中国空军运输机在苏丹喀土穆国际机场降落。经中央军委批准,空军2月28日派出4架伊尔-76飞机,经苏丹首都喀土穆赴利比亚执行接运中国在利比亚人员回国的任务。
新华社发(穆罕默德·巴比克尔摄)3月1日,承担撤侨任务的中国空军运输机在苏丹喀土穆国际机场降落。经中央军委批准,空军2月28日派出4架伊尔-76飞机,经苏丹首都喀土穆赴利比亚执行接运中国在利比亚人员回国的任务。新华社发(穆罕默德·巴比克尔摄)
For details on the air component of military support for China’s evacuation operations, see Gabe Collins and Andrew Erickson, “The PLA Air Force’s First Overseas Operational Deployment: Analysis of China’s decision to deploy IL-76 transport aircraft to Libya,” China SignPost™ (洞察中国), No. 27 (1 March 2011).

For more details on Beijing’s dispatching of the frigate […]

01 March 2011

Xinhua: “Chinese Navy Frigate Arrives Waters off Libya for Escort Mission”

“Chinese Navy Frigate Arrives Waters off Libya for Escort Mission,” Xinhua, 1 March 2011.
Updated: 2011-03-01 20:00:00
BEIJING, March 1 (Xinhua) — A Chinese navy frigate has already reached mission waters off Libya on Tuesday to offer support and protection for ships evacuating Chinese nationals.
The frigate, Xuzhou, met with a Greek merchant vessel chartered by the Chinese […]

01 March 2011

China SignPost™ (洞察中国) #27: “The PLA Air Force’s First Overseas Operational Deployment: Analysis of China’s decision to deploy IL-76 transport aircraft to Libya”

Gabriel B. Collins and Andrew S. Erickson, “The PLA Air Force’s First Overseas Operational Deployment: Analysis of China’s decision to Deploy IL-76 Transport Aircraft to Libya,” China SignPost™ (洞察中国) 27 (1 March 2011).
China SignPost™ 洞察中国–“Clear, high-impact China analysis.”©
China’s evacuation of its citizens from Libya became a multi-service operation on the afternoon of 28 February 2011, when the […]

01 March 2011

China’s Increasing Air Power: Implications for the Republic of Korea Air Force

Andrew S. Erickson, “China’s Increasing Air Power: Implications for the Republic of Korea Air Force,” in 김기정, 문정인, 최종건 [Kim Ki Jong, Moon Chung In, and Choi Jong Kun, eds.], 한반도 안보환경 변화와 항공우주력의 진화 [Changes in the Security Environment and the Evolution of Air Power on the Korean Peninsula], 연세대공군력연구총서 [Yonsei University Air Force Studies […]

28 February 2011

Jason Miks, The Diplomat: “‘Osama Bin Laden Did It’”

Jason Miks, “‘Osama Bin Laden Did It’,” The Diplomat, 25 February 2011.
While Libyan leader Col. Muammar Gaddafi takes a further step from reality by blaming the unrest in his country on al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, there are a couple of interesting China-related developments I wanted to mention before the weekend.

The first relates to an interesting […]

28 February 2011

Zhongping News Agency: China’s Air Force Sends 4 IL-76 Military Transport Aircraft to Evacuate Chinese Nationals from Libya

中国空军派4架飞机接运中国在利比亚人员

http://www.chinareviewnews.com 2011-02-28 17:47:33

中评社北京2月28日电/国防部新闻事务局透露,经中央军委批准,空军派出4架伊尔-76飞机,于2月28日飞赴利比亚执行接运中国在利比亚人员的任务
For more details on Beijing’s dispatching of the frigate Xuzhou to escort ships transporting Chinese citizens from Libya, see:
Gabe Collins and Andrew Erickson, “Missile Frigate Xuzhou Transits Suez Canal, to Arrive off Libya ~Wednesday 2 March: China’s first operational deployment to Mediterranean addresses Libya’s evolving security situation,” China SignPost™ (洞察中国), No. 26 (27 February 2011).
Gabe […]

28 February 2011

Evan Osnos, The New Yorker: “The Chinese Navy, Zambian Copper, and Libya”

Evan Osnos, “The Chinese Navy, Zambian Copper, and Libya,” Letter from China: Dispatches from Evan Osnos (Blog), The New Yorker, 28 February 2011.
…Zambia is hardly the only place that Chinese ventures have encountered security trouble in recent years. According to a tally published last August in a valuable report by the security analysts Andrew Erickson and […]

28 February 2011

China SignPost™ (洞察中国) #26–Missile Frigate Xuzhou Transits Suez Canal, to Arrive off Libya ~Wednesday 2 March: China’s first operational deployment to Mediterranean addresses Libya’s evolving security situation

Gabriel B. Collins and Andrew S. Erickson, “Missile Frigate Xuzhou Transits Suez Canal, to Arrive off Libya ~Wednesday 2 March: China’s First Operational Deployment to Mediterranean Addresses Libya’s Evolving Security Situation,” China SignPost™ (洞察中国) 26 (27 February 2011).
China SignPost™ 洞察中国–“Clear, high-impact China analysis.”©
Current situation
Libya’s security situation is becoming increasingly volatile as embattled leader Col. Muammar […]

27 February 2011

China SignPost™ (洞察中国) #18: “China’s New Project 718/J-20 Fighter: Development outlook and strategic implications” Cited in Wikipedia

Gabe Collins and Andrew Erickson, “China’s New Project 718/J-20 Fighter: Development outlook and strategic implications,” China SignPost™ (洞察中国), No. 18 (17 January 2011).

Cited in “Chengdu J-20,” Wikipedia.
The Chengdu J-20 (simplified Chinese: 歼二十; traditional Chinese: 殲二十; pinyin: Jiān èr shí; literally “Annihilator Twenty”) is a fifth generation stealth, twin-engine fighter aircraft prototype developed by Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force.[5][6] In […]

27 February 2011

South China Morning Post: “PLA Navy Sends Warship to Safeguard Libya Evacuees–Frigate Diverted from Anti-Piracy Patrols to Protect Chinese”

Greg Torode and Minnie Chan, “PLA Navy Sends Warship to Safeguard Libya Evacuees–Frigate Diverted from Anti-Piracy Patrols to Protect Chinese,” South China Morning Post, 26 February 2011.
…The missile frigate Xuzhou is under orders to “support and protect” the more than 30,000 Chinese nationals being evacuated from Libya on civilian ships as the regime of Colonel […]

25 February 2011

Adam Rawnsley, Wired.com Danger Room: “Chinese Missile Ship Races to Libya for Rescue Duty”

Adam Rawnsley, “Chinese Missile Ship Races to Libya for Rescue Duty,” Danger Room, Wired.com, 25 February 2011.

We’re used to seeing the U.S. Navy pull American citizens out of warzones. Now, China’s navy is doing the same thing — sending a ship to snag its people out of Libya, as the country teeters on the […]

25 February 2011

Galrahn, Information Dissemination: “Asia Sending Ships to Libya”

Galrahn, “Asia Sending Ships to Libya,” Information Dissemination, 25 February 2011.
From China Signpost, Gabe Collins and Andrew Erickson offer some analysis regarding the latest news from the PLA Navy.
The PLA Navy has just dispatched Xuzhou, a Type 054 Jiangkai-II class missile frigate, from the ongoing seventh PLAN anti-piracy task force deployment off Somalia to steam to […]

25 February 2011

Elliott Abrams, Council on Foreign Relations, Pressure Points Blog: “Who’s the Superpower? Lessons from Libya”

Elliott Abrams, “Who’s the Superpower? Lessons from Libya,” Pressure Points Blog, Council on Foreign Relations, 24 February 2011.

China is sending a warship, among other planes and ships, to evacuate its citizens from Libya. According to the report, “The PLA Navy has just dispatched Xuzhou, a Type 054 Jiangkai-II class missile frigate, from the ongoing seventh […]

25 February 2011

Christopher Bodeen, Associated Press/Yahoo News: “In Unprecedented Move, China Sends Navy Ship to Protect Libya Evacuees”

Christopher Bodeen, Associated Press, “In Unprecedented Move, China Sends Navy Ship to Protect Libya Evacuees,” Yahoo News, 25 February 2011.
BEIJING, China — China is taking the unprecedented step of dispatching a navy ship to protect its citizens being evacuated from conflict-ridden Libya — underscoring the navy’s growing capabilities and Beijing’s need to protect its citizens abroad.
[…]

25 February 2011

Geoff Dyer, Financial Times: “China’s Overseas Workers in Peril”

Geoff Dyer, “China’s Overseas Workers in Peril,” Financial Times Blog, 25 February 2011.
Like many other nations, China has been scrambling to put together evacuation plans for its citizens stuck in crisis-torn Libya. The real surprise has been just how many Chinese are living there. The foreign ministry does not know for sure but puts the figure at 30-40,000.
[…]

25 February 2011

Jeremy Page, Wall Street Journal: “Libyan Turmoil Prompts Chinese Naval Firsts”

Jeremy Page, “Libyan Turmoil Prompts Chinese Naval Firsts,” China Real Time Report, Wall Street Journal, 25 February 2011.
China has sent one of its most modern warships to protect vessels extracting thousands of its citizens from Libya, in the Asian power’s first naval operation in the Mediterranean Sea and its first deployment of military hardware in […]

24 February 2011

China SignPost™ (洞察中国) #25–China Dispatches Warship to Protect Libya Evacuation Mission: Marks the PRC’s first use of frontline military assets to protect an evacuation mission

Gabriel B. Collins and Andrew S. Erickson, “China Dispatches Warship to Protect Libya Evacuation Mission: Marks the PRC’s First Use of Frontline Military Assets to Protect an Evacuation Mission,” China SignPost™ (洞察中国) 25 (24 February 2011).
China SignPost™ 洞察中国–“Clear, high-impact China analysis.”©
What we know
The PLA Navy has just dispatched Xuzhou, a Type 054 Jiangkai-II class missile […]

23 February 2011

China’s Electronic Intelligence Satellite Developments: Implications for U.S. Air and Naval Operations

Ian Easton and Mark Stokes, China’s Electronic Intelligence Satellite Developments: Implications for U.S. Air and Naval Operations (Arlington, VA: Project 2049 Institute, 23 February 2011).
A review of authoritative Chinese writings indicate that the People’s Republic of China is researching, developing, testing, and deploying a number of electronic intelligence (ELINT) satellites for the tracking and targeting […]