New Type98/99 MBT thread
- Thread starter Dongfeng
- Start date
plawolf
Lieutenant General
When was the last time anyone deployed heavy MBTs for a peacekeeping mission?
China has yet to even allow combat troops to be deployed for peacekeeping missions, instead preferring to limit its contribution to logistical, medical and engineering units thus far, and I do not see that happening anytime soon.
Even if China was to engage more proactively in peacekeeping, there is absolutely no need to deploy any tanks, never mind top of the range MBTs for the simple fact that MBTs are for winning wars, not maintaining the peace.
If you need MBTs for your peacekeepers, then the peace has not been won yet, and deploying peacekeepers would have been premature at best.
The only UN mission that could call heavy MBTs would be a Desert Storm kind of UN sanctioned war of liberation. You need to get pretty creative to come up with many scenarios where a) the UN would sign off on such military action b) China would care enough to get it's hands dirty c) The threat is grave enough that the likes of the US and UK would put aside their anti-China agenda to allow China to participate so directly. d) Direct military intervention is a viable solution, with clear, achievable objectives and a viable exit strategy for after the war has ended.
Somalia does not fit any of those criteria, and is a non-starter even on the drawing board. There is a good reason none of the major powers wanted any piece of that mess and have palmed off the fighting and dying to the AU, most of who's contribution members are only involved because of US money and horse trading.
If we are just wish listing, I would have to say that I think that the very best use for a Chinese led major UN peacekeeping force would be one to maintain the peace if and when Israel and Palestine can reach a viable two-state solution.
The Chinese are probably the only major power both the Palestinians and Israelis both trust enough to make it feel like an honestly independent peacekeeping mission without the inevitable suspicions of bias or complicity that would mar any American or Russian or European peacekeepers.
The boost to Chinese standing domestically and internationally from a successful mission would be enough to entice Beijing to commit the resources and take the risks involved, and peace in the ME has been so elusive that there would be widespread support for China to take on such a mission.
However, both Palestine and Israel must first actually want a peaceful resolution to their conflict first, and I would be amazed if America could allow anyone else to take the credit for such a historic achievement if it was within reach. And even if America cannot claim that prize, it would be damned if it would allow China to do so.
But that's just my opinion anyways, and we seem to have strayed a little from the core topic of this thread.
already looking much improved protection over the ZTZ-96
I know about 500.
Units equiped 3 Arm Div and 116 ID Mech/ 39 Grp Army/MR Shenyang, and ID Mech 112/38 Grp Army/MR Pékin.
One armored Div have about 300 tank.
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You mean this one:
I originally left this out because it is not of the tank and is a small pic anyway.
You haven't seen them from this viewpoint before:
Anyone know if the new 99 variant has entered service yet. The pics looks like some sort of final testing.
Are you sure this a Type 99 model?
It seems to me that it is a new variant of the Type 96 with a new-style Type 99 turret.
What suggests this is the more steeply sloped, flat glacis plate without the central driver's position and the US-style road wheels.
It seems to me that the PLA is developing 2 new models of both the Type 96 and Type 98 using this new turret with the very long gun barrel.
Just my 2 cents.
