Vietnam special forces prep for S China Sea action: media
Staff Reporter 2015-06-22 17:13 (GMT+8)
Two of Vietnamese Navy's four Tarantul-class corvettes. (Internet photo)
To stop China's land reclamation activities in the disputed South China Sea, the Vietnamese military is preparing to attack the Chinese facilities in the region with special forces, according to Moscow-based Kommersant.
As military exercises held by the Vietnamese military since 2004 have shown, the People's Air Force of Vietnam's Su-22 tactical bomber will be used to launch the first strike against maritime targets with AS-10 air-to-surface missiles. At the same time, the Su-30 fighter is likely to provide cover for the Su-22 bombers during the strike. The bomber can attack the People's Liberation Army Navy's vessels from an attitude of 2,500 to 3,000 meters.
Next, the People's Navy of Vietnam will carry out an amphibious landing against the islands and reefs currently under Chinese occupation. The landing vessels are to be covered by aircraft, torpedo boats and corvettes. The Beijing-based Sina Military Network reports that the Vietnamese Navy's four Tarantul-class corvettes are equipped with Russian-built Kh-35 anti-ship missiles which are extremely dangerous for PLA surface combat vessels.
Vietnam is just the second nation in the world to have Kh-35 anti-ship missiles. It has an attacking range of 130 to 300 kilometers.
After that, Vietnamese special forces will initiate attacks against targets including merchant ships, supply vessels, radar stations, ports and storage areas on smaller islands or reefs with fewer Chinese troops stationed there. A Vietnamese special operations team has between three and five military personnel per unit, the Kommersant said.
