| Special Operations Force | |
|---|---|
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.
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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.[1]
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