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Thursday, October 05, 2017

About That Core Interest

Is China preparing to invade Taiwan in 2020?

The secret war plan drawn up by the People's Liberation Army (PLA), the Chinese Communist Party's armed forces, calls for massive missile attacks on the island, along with a naval and air blockade that is followed by amphibious beach landing assaults using up to 400,000 troops. ...

The war plan calls for rapidly capturing the capital Taipei and destroying the government; seizing other major cities and clearing out surviving defenders; and occupying the entire country.

Military operations will emphasize speed and surprise to overwhelm coastal defenses and create so much destruction in the early phase that Taiwan would surrender before the U.S. military can deploy forces to the area.

I think China can invade already, although I think the sea assault would primarily aim for seizing ports right at the start (and this adds an aspect to the invasion).

And I think that a focus on the small size of China's marine force as a reason China can't invade Taiwan is a red herring.

So I don't understand the article's assumption that an invasion would fail.

All China has to do is deter or delay an American-led intervention to save Taiwan and survive the war with a major army on Taiwan by the time a ceasefire is proclaimed, even if China can't overcome Taiwan's armed forces to conquer the island in one campaign.

Tip to Instapundit.