It is not necessary to go very far to find clues about the challenges that China has with Taiwan. In December, the island found an army of 53 aircraft and 90 Chinese ships in an unpublished exhibition. Days before, filtered documents showed that the nation has a plan with up to six options to invade the island through the beach and its ports. All this does nothing but confirm with the latest images. If things twist, everything is almost ready.
Images and video. In the last 24 hours a video and several images have been leaked through the Navalnews medium that have revealed the presence and deployment of new Chinese lifting barges (called in English Jack-Up Barges), used to build temporary docks that can extend in the sea and facilitate amphibious operations.
No doubt, development is seen as part of China’s preparations for a possible invasion of Taiwan, as well as a strategy to expand the use of maritime assets of civil appearance in support of the Navy of the Popular Liberation Army (Plan). In fact, the video shows three of these barges deployed in tandem on an unidentified beach, confirming China’s intention to integrate them into their military infrastructure.
What we see. As we said, satellite snapshots from Guangzhou Shipyard International (GSI) on Longxue Island have confirmed the departure of three of these barges, previously under construction, while three others remain in development.
The analyst Tom Shugart, of the American Security Center (CNAS), identified this movement and pointed out in his X account that the vessels did not use the automatic identification system (AIS), which suggests that China seeks to avoid its tracking or that, in effect, they are active of the plan. As we will see below, this behavior is similar to that of other double -use ships that have participated in Chinese military exercises and other nations.
Aerial view of one of the artificial ports called Mulberry, built by the allies against Arromanches, Normandía (September 1944)
Mulberry ports. The most striking thing about the design of these barges is their ability to join to form a single structure extended in the sea. They counted in media such as The War Zone that initially thought they would work independently, but the new evidence shows that they are designed to operate together, creating a kind of floating dock approximately 850 meters long, allowing the transfer of loads from larger vessels in deeper waters.
The truth is that this floating infrastructure model is not new in military history, since it remembers and much to the Mulberry ports used by the allies in the Normandy landing during World War II. With a remarkable difference, yes: the Chinese version incorporates hydraulic supports that raise barge on water, providing stability even in adverse climatic conditions, which could guarantee a constant flow of loading, vehicles and troops without depending on traditional ports.
Comparison with other infrastructure. The idea of using floating docks with military purposes is not exclusive to China. Recently, the United States Army implemented a similar system to expedite the delivery of humanitarian aid in Gaza (although a storm seriously damaged it), which demonstrated the vulnerability of this type of infrastructure in extreme climatic conditions. In contrast, the design of Chinese barges, with their elevators, offers greater resistance to the inclement weather and could be key to establishing a continuous logistics supply in an operation.
However, these structures also have disadvantages. Being large and stationary once deployed, they become easy and high strategic value objectives, which suggests that its main use would be possibly after the initial assault, facilitating the arrival of reinforcements and supplies once the area has been insured.
The role of the civil naval industry. The use of civil infrastructure for military purposes is a key tactic in China’s strategy. It is known, in fact, because it has been documented in the annual Pentagon report on Chinese military development.
Although the plan has not invested in the amount of landing vessels that analysts believe necessary for a large-scale invasion of Taiwan, it has reinforced their capabilities with civil ships turned into military assistants, such as the so-called Roll-on/Roll-Off (ro/ro) and other logistics platforms.
More than one purpose. This commercial asset militarization trend is not only designed for an eventual invasion of Taiwan, but could also be applied in other strategic scenarios within the Indo-Pacific. Of course, these resources could also be used in disaster response operations and humanitarian assistance as the United States already did, which allows China to project power under a “benevolent” appearance.
Perspectives and geopolitics. It is the last of the legs to be treated after knowing some images that leave so few doubts. The development of these lifting barges and their potential use in a Taiwan invasion have generated concern among military analysts in the United States and their allies. In fact, previous reports indicated that Beijing could be able to launch a military operation against Taiwan by 2027, although other more recent estimates have softened such prediction.
Be that as it may, the general consensus seems to be the same: China remains committed to the reunification of Taiwan of a U other way, and if things get in the worst stage, they already have lists some of the necessary capabilities for the logistics of a large -scale “amphibious” invasion.
Imagen | Smiley Man, Imperial War Museums.
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