PLA could learn from Ukraine war and use paramilitary in Taiwan, article says
- Russia’s difficulties during street fighting in urban settings in Ukraine has offered lessons for any future attempt by Beijing to seize Taiwan
- The role of the People’s Armed Police could be adapted to complement the army’s field operations, observers say
One of the lessons learned from the Russian military in Ukraine should be its failure in street fighting, which has held back Moscow’s plan to occupy all strategically important cities within days, according to an article published by mainland news website Guancha.cn.
“Compared with the relatively simple terrain in an open-field operation, the environment of urban battles is much more complicated,” military affairs writer Chen Feng wrote. “There is no quick solution when it comes to street fighting.”
Open-field battles allow soldiers to breach and storm with missiles, artillery, assault vehicles and other heavy weapons and equipment, but street fighting would be limited by serried streets and buildings.
The Chinese military has kept a close eye on developments in Ukraine since Russia launched its attack in late February, analysing the Russians’ progress using satellite images, especially of city battles.