The Chinese order of battle in the 2020–2021 China–India skirmishes.
Background
| CCP General Secretary and CMC Chairman | Xi Jinping[1] |
|---|---|
| Commander of the Western Theater Command | Zhao Zongqi[1] (Until Dec 2020)[2] |
| Deputy Commander of the Western Theater Command | Wang Qiang[1] |
| Theatre Command HQ | Chengdu[3] |
| Ground Forces, HQ | Lanzhou, Gansu[3] |
Prior deployment in Eastern Ladakh included 362nd and 363rd Border Defence Regiments. Companies from 362nd were stationed at Khurnak Fort and Spanggur Tso.[4][5] 363rd have companies at Kongka La near Gogra/Hot Springs.A patrol boat squadron is deployed on Pangong Tso. 362nd and 363rd occupied pickets as the skirmishes progressed.[6]
In April 2020, the 4th (Highland) Motorised Infantry and 6th (Highland) Mechanised Infantry Divisions of the Western Theatre Command took part in pre-planned annual exercises in the Gobi desert and Aksai Chin. Following this the divisions moved towards the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.[7][8] The divisions stayed in eastern Ladakh from May 2020 to February 2021 following which they rotated with the 8th and the 11th Motorised Divisions.[7] A total of 90% of China's deployment in Ladakh is rotated.[9] Amidst the standoff, military in Xinjiang has undergone modernisation.[2]
6th Mechanised Infantry Division
- People's Liberation Army Ground Force
- 6th Highland Mechanised Infantry Division at Depsang Plains.[6][3]
- Two mechanised infantry regiments/brigades
- 7th Mechanised Infantry Regiment
- 18th Mechanised Infantry Regiment
- One armoured regiment
- Combat support includes a field artillery regiment, air defence regiment, combat engineer battalion, electronic warfare battalion, CBRN defence battalion, divisional reconnaissance battalion
- Each mechanised infantry regiment/brigade has four mechanised battalions
- A tank battalion
- Artillery battalion
- Combat support is provided by an engineer battalion and a signal battalion
- Each mechanised infantry regiment/brigade has four mechanised battalions
- Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment
- Aviation regiment
- Squadron of Harbin Z-9G and Mi-17I
- Two mechanised infantry regiments/brigades
- 6th Highland Mechanised Infantry Division at Depsang Plains.[6][3]
4th Motorised Infantry Division
- People's Liberation Army Ground Force
- 4th Highland Motorised Infantry Division at Galwan Valley, Hot Springs and Pangong Tso.[6][3]
- 11th Motorised Infantry Regiment following standard table of organisation
- 12th Motorised Infantry Regiment
- A tank regiment, artillery regiment
- Anti-tank, anti-aircraft artillery battalions
- Type 86 ICVs, WZ-551, 6 x 6 APCs, VN-1 8 x 8 APCs with Red Arrow 10
- Army Groups providing the following support:
- 4th Highland Motorised Infantry Division at Galwan Valley, Hot Springs and Pangong Tso.[6][3]
PLA Air Force
- PLA Air Force[3]
- 6th Fighter Division, Yinchuan, Ningxia
- Regiment of J-11 Shenyang
- Regiment of Chengdu J-7
- Regiment of Chengdu J-7Es
- 33rd and 37th Fighter Division, Chongqing and Urumqi
- Bomber and transport division, Lintong and Qionglai
- 6th Fighter Division, Yinchuan, Ningxia
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 The Chinese generals involved in Ladakh standoff, Arpi, Claude. Rediff(13 June 2020). Retrieved 2021-06-12.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 PLA modernises Xinjiang's military units in 'reaction' to India-China LAC row. Hindustan Times(2021-05-17). Retrieved 2021-06-14.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Military Digest | Eastern Ladakh Sitrep: The 'Bottleneck' in Indo-China talks, Bajwa, Mandeep Singh. The Indian Express(2020-08-02). Retrieved 2021-06-13.
- ↑ Chinese order of battle in Aksai Chin: What are we up against?, Bajwa, Mandeep Singh. The Indian Express(2020-07-11). Retrieved 2021-06-12.
- ↑ Understanding the military build-up on the China–India border, Boyd, Henry. IISS. International Institute for Strategic Studies(18 June 2021). Retrieved 2021-06-13.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Military Digest | Detailed Order of Battle: Chinese Forces in Eastern Ladakh, Bajwa, Mandeep Singh. The Indian Express(2020-07-19). Retrieved 2021-06-12.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Eastern Ladakh: Chinese Formations Undertaking Rotation, Gokhale, Nitin A.. Bharat Shakti(27 April 2021). Retrieved 2021-06-14.
- ↑ Shadow force apart, India needs a China plan. The Hindu(2020-09-25). Retrieved 2021-06-14.
- ↑ China rotates 90 per cent troops deployed along Ladakh sector on India border. The Times of India(6 June 2021). Retrieved 2021-06-22.
Further reading
- Kevin McCauley (13 January 2017) Snapshot: China's Western Theater Command. China Brief 17: 1. Jamestown Foundation.
- Kashif Anwar (16 August 2021). Chinese Drones in East Ladakh and India's Response Template:Webarchive. Centre for Air Power Studies, New Delhi.