The PLA Marine Corps (PLANMC) is a vital cog in Xi Jinping’s dream of establishing a Sino-centric world order as he builds the strongest military in the world. He is striving to develop a world-class Marine Corps that will be an elite force capable of full spectrum multidomain operations in all dimensions, including during emergencies at all times. The success or failure of China’s global ambitions depends heavily on the growth of this force. As the PLANMC expands, the PLA assumes the nature of a capability-based force instead of a task/threat-based force. It becomes a critical capability for China’s expeditionary tasks and power projection. In the future, the pulse of China’s military prowess can be felt through its Marine Corps operations. Broad Organization The 1st Marine Brigade was founded on May 5, 1980. Later, in 1998, the PLAA’s 164th Division was reorganized into the 2nd Marine Brigade, forming the PLANMC with two brigades and approximately 10,000 personnel under the South Sea Fleet as part of the PLA Navy. In the initial stages, the primary mission of the PLANMC was confined to islands and reefs in the South China Sea. In those days, the PLANMC was primarily involved in establishing and expanding Chinese control over the South China Sea by seizing unoccupied islands or assaulting and annexing held islands. After that, the marines were used to defend these islands from countries with which China had disputes in the South China Sea. It was well into Xi’s reign that, in April 2017, the PLA expanded the Marine Corps. Its strength increased from the original brigades to six with four additional brigades. These new brigades were transferred from the PLAA’s coastal defense force, motorized infantry, and some other forces. In addition, a Special Operations Brigade was constituted. This was based on the Jiaolong Commando Unit, an existing special forces unit of PLAN. An Aviation Brigade operating transport helicopters was also transferred into the force. This brought the total force to eight brigades with around 40,000 personnel (see Table). It is estimated that the PLANMC will be expanded to 100,000 personnel in the future. It is important to note that among the five branches comprising the PLAN — the Surface Force, the Submarine Force, the Naval Air Force, the Coastal Defense Force, and the Marine Corps — it is the PLANMC, which has its headquarters. Though the PLANMC is subordinate to the PLAN, the fact that it has been allowed to have its own Headquarters is indicative that in the long run, PLANMC might be a Service of its own fashion, much like the US Marine Corps. Concept The PLANMC is being designed as the first choice force for strategic maneuver operations. It is expected to carry out multidimensional precision assaults in overseas and out-of-area contingencies. Such maneuver will encompass multidimensional projection, multi-arm coordinated assault, and over-the-horizon concealed launch. It will be supported by combined precision information and firepower offensive capabilities of the PLASF and PLARF. The PLANMC forces are expected to conduct rapid precision maneuvers to strike at the enemy’s weak areas in depth to exploit gaps, outflank enemy localities, and disrupt an opponent’s defensive system. The aim seems to be to paralyze the enemy so that the PLA can gain its objectives at the least cost. Role and Tasks The prime motive in establishing the PLANMC is to recover areas China considers “lost territories,” such as Taiwan, the Senkaku Islands, and the Spratly Islands. This also breaks the First Island Chain, which constricts PLAN and contains China by posing a direct threat to the mainland. If needed and an opportunity presents itself, China might not hesitate to change the status quo forcefully. This was already exhibited when China occupied reefs and built them into artificial islands to establish control over the South China Sea. The next task of the PLANMC would be to defend the islands it has usurped in the South China Sea and capture those it claims in the South China Sea. With the issuance of its new standard map in which the entire South China Sea inside the new  ‘Ten Dash’ Line has been depicted to be Chinese, this task has assumed increased significance and importance. It will do well to remember that the PRC has already seized control of Scarborough Shoal from the Philippines in 2012 and has thoroughly repudiated the ruling of the International Court of Justice. Since 2014, China has conducted reclamation/dredging in seven reefs and islets in the South China Sea to construct and militarize artificial islands. It has also kept US forces at bay. The ongoing tussle with the Philippines indicates that China intends to gain control of islands and reefs controlled by other countries in due course. This includes the Taiwan-controlled islands of Itu Aba and the Pratas Islands. This role will become more significant as the PLANMC expands its amphibious capabilities. An important role and task of the PLANMC would be “the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation” by capturing Taiwan in conjunction with other forces in a full-scale invasion of the island. Whenever China decides to unify Taiwan by force, it will use PLANMC as the spearhead to carry out the amphibious assault in conjunction with all its other naval, missile, and air forces. To annex Taiwan, the initial boots on the ground will be that of PLANMC personnel to overcome the opposition from the islanders. The PLA is strengthening its expeditionary capability to protect China’s “overseas interests” worldwide. To that end, the PLANMC is being trained and organized to carry out expeditionary operations and missions in areas far away from mainland China. These areas of interest include Chinese diplomatic missions, business enterprises, construction projects, and workers in other countries as part of the BRI and other mercantile ventures. The PLANMC will be expected to protect Chinese overseas interests in various countries and open oceans from regional and international turmoil. This includes terrorism and piracy. Already, PLAN vessels are conducting anti-piracy activities in the Gulf of Aden. In addition, PLANMC units have been stationed to guard China’s base in Djibouti since 2017. It is also being assessed that marines will be deployed in Gwadar if they have not been secretly deployed. In recent years, the Marines’ special operations unit has repeatedly conducted training exercises in deserts, cold highlands, and jungle terrains. Such training indicates that the PLANMC can perform operations in any part of the world. The PLANMC will likely play an essential role along with PLASSF and PLARF in power projection through expeditionary roles. Composition The six Marine brigades will be amphibious combined arms brigades. They are equipped with amphibious assault guns instead of tanks and amphibious infantry fighting vehicles (IFV)/armored personnel carriers (APC). An entire amphibious combined arms brigade will likely have about  5,000 personnel and over 400 vehicles. Each amphibious combined arms brigade is expected to be composed of the following: Four combined arms battalions, each with two amphibious assault gun companies, two amphibious mechanized infantry companies, a firepower company (mortars and man-portable air defense systems—MANPADs), and a service support company (with reconnaissance and engineer platoons). An amphibious combined arms battalion numbers about 80 vehicles of all types and an estimated 500-600 soldiers. One reconnaissance battalion has amphibious reconnaissance vehicles, small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), and technical reconnaissance systems. One artillery battalion has amphibious 122mm howitzers, tracked 122mm rocket launchers, and anti-tank guided missile systems. One air defense battalion with tracked anti-aircraft gun systems, short-range surface-to-air missile systems, and MANPADS. One operational support battalion with command and control vehicles, electronic warfare systems, engineering equipment, chemical defense systems, and security elements One service support battalion with supply, medical, and repair and maintenance units. The six amphibious combined arms brigades command 24 amphibious combined arms battalions and six reconnaissance battalions. These are expected to be the first wave to hit the beaches in an amphibious assault. The Special Operations Brigade has around 3,000 personnel. Its detailed organization is still unclear. Several specialists and experts from across the entire spectrum of special operations units in the PLA have been transferred to this brigade. These special forces units will likely be at high readiness levels to respond to emergencies and critical tasks. The  Aviation Brigade is a significant addition to the PLANMC. It enhances the integral aerial mobility of PLANMC. It does not have to rely on PLAN or PLAAF for its Helilift capability. The aviation brigade is expected to be a “leading force for advancing from the sea to shore in depth” and “a force for strategic maneuver.”  The Aviation Brigade will, in all probability, be used to carry out vertical envelopment operations into the adversary’s depth. The PLANMC is being outfitted with advanced equipment. This includes lightweight amphibious troop carriers, tanks, and artillery. Light equipment currently designed and deployed in their high-altitude areas is also being repurposed for airborne roles. The PLANMC is also equipped with landing ships capable of carrying amphibious fighting vehicles and other vehicles into the intended areas of operation to support amphibious and follow-up land operations. Analysis The PLANMC is a work in progress. The Chinese are aping the US Marine Corps in the way they are shaping their marines. Hence, they are far from being a force of decision. The four brigades newly formed out of units transferred from the PLAA will take a long time to be fully effective in the execution of amphibious operations. Amphibious and related special operations require many skill sets and complex command and operational capabilities combining sea, land, and air forces. While the organization has come into being and manpower has been provided, it is not yet fully trained or kitted for the envisaged tasks. There is a long way to go. A significant drawback of this force is the lack of helicopter pilots and sufficient helicopters to go with it. As per reports that have been emerging, the PLA Navy has been handicapped by a lack of capable officers to command their ships. This shortage would apply equally to its amphibious craft, where the requisite skill capability would be higher. These two drawbacks significantly would inhibit any Marine Corps. There will be many more HR problems related to leadership and manpower capabilities that have not appeared in the open domain. These problems cannot be wished away. Such capability cannot be enhanced in quick time. The overall lack of combat experience of the PLA will be telling. Hence, the PLANMC will be a force with limited capabilities for a long time. For a force that has just come into being, it has been given too many competing missions. It is tasked to focus on large-scale amphibious operations, urgent contingency response tasks, and precision attack tasks in the near and far seas. On paper, the PLANMC looks like a formidable force. These tasks will involve use of unmanned systems (air, ground, surface, and underwater), operations involving long-range precision fires through various delivery platforms in an informatised environment. These complex tasks need a flexible approach and a directive style of leadership. The politically oriented PLA, on the other hand, is known for its rigidity in thought. This issue must be considered because the performance of the PLA in UN missions has been subpar. There are plenty of reports that have indicated that Chinese troops have even run away after abandoning weapons. In the larger scheme of things, the effectiveness of this force in the long term, even when fully kitted, will be questionable.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and Environment Minister Steffi Lemke signed High Seas Treaty on Wednesday, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly. The UN adopted the treaty in June as the basis for the designation of large environmentally-protected areas on maritime areas that fall outside the control of individual countries. What the two ministers said Baerbock said the treaty was "a glimmer of hope for the world's oceans, a glimmer of hope for the people of this world, but also a glimmer of hope for the United Nations." She said the high seas had previously been "de facto a lawless area," but added, "That's changing now." Lemke, who like Baerbock is a lawmaker for the Green Party, described the signing as a "historic day for the protection of the seas." The environment minister welcomed the fact that there are now, for the first time, rules to protect biodiversity in the world's oceans. "We depend on healthy oceans to combat the climate crisis, the pollution crisis and the species extinction crisis," explained Lemke. "Protected areas on the high seas" must now be designated "quickly in order to place 30% of the world's oceans under strict protection." Joining the two politicians for the ceremony was Germany's Federal Government Commissioner for the Sea, Sebastian Unger. What is the High Seas Treaty? For the first time, the international agreement provides protection for areas outside the exclusive economic zones of individual countries. The treaty stipulates that activities such as the extraction of mineral resources on the high seas must be preceded by an assessment of their environmental consequences. More than 60% of maritime areas are outside such exclusive economic zones. To date, protection rules of varying degrees have only applied to a small part of these marine areas. Germany was among dozens of countries to become a signatory to the treaty on Wednesday, the first day that the text for the freshly-ratified document became available. The UN said 67 countries had signed the treaty on the same day, including the United States, China, Australia, Britain France, Mexico and the European Union as a whole.

A US military aircraft carrying over 20 personnel came down on an island off the northern coast of Australia on Sunday morning, the Australian Defence Ministry said. 3 US Marines died in the crash, the US Marine Corps said on its account on the platform X, formally known as Twitter. Local police earlier said 23 US Marines were injured in the crash, with five people being taken to two mainland hospitals, one with critical injuries. The aircraft, reported to be a US Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey, crashed during a multinational military exercise involving soldiers from Australia, the US, the Philippines, Indonesia and Timor-Leste. No Australian military personnel were reported to have been involved. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the "tragic" incident was "regrettable" and "difficult."   What do we know about the incident? Several military personnel had been rescued from an aircraft crash on the Tiwi Islands, north of Darwin, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) said. There were no reports of deaths, the broadcaster said. It cited a spokesperson from Australia's Defence Ministry as saying that "initial reports suggest the incident involves United States defense personnel and that Australian Defence Force members were not involved."  The ministry said the incident occurred on Melville Island — one of the Tiwi Islands — during Exercise Predator's Run 2023. Melville Island is located some 60 kilometers (37 miles) north of the Australian mainland in the eastern Timor Sea.  Increased military cooperation The Osprey aircraft involved is a tilt-rotor aircraft that combines features of both helicopters and turboprop planes, according to the US Air Force. The US and Australia have been stepping up military cooperation in recent years amid concern about China's growing geopolitical assertiveness in the region. A helicopter crash last month off the coast of the northeastern state of Queensland during large-scale bilateral exercises killed four Australian soldiers.   

Chinese distant water fishing fleet (DWF) is deployed across every ocean. It is often found guilty of violating the domestic laws of the respective countries and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), reported Investigative Journalism Reportika (IJR). It also indulges in targeting endangered species, falsifying licenses & documentation, espionage & reconnaissance activities, seizing territories, generating a lot of sea waste, and violating EEZs of other nations. Captains of Chinese DWF ships disable their transponders while engaging in illicit fishing to avoid being watched in sensitive areas. It has been observed that the automatic identification systems (AIS) aboard these ships suffer transmission pauses of at least eight hours near the EEZ of other countries. "Chinese ships disable their transponders close to EEZ of other countries to avoid being detected by the #AIS system; a practice called "marine radar evasion," tweeted Tibet Rights Collective. From 2019 to 2021, China fished in Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) of over 80 other countries for more than 3 million hours and spent nearly 10 million hours outside its own EEZ in the high-seas and the EEZs of other nations. China is the world's largest producer of aquaculture and captures fisheries. According to the United Nations, China consumes around 36 per cent of total global fish production and hauls in 15.2 million tonnes of marine life annually, a massive 20 per cent of the world's annual catch, reported IJR. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), China ranked top of the top ten global capture producers in 2020 from Marine sources. Having depleted fish stocks in domestic waters, including the South China Sea, the fleets of China are now traveling further afield to meet the rising demand for seafood. Beijing says its distant water fishing fleet numbers 2,500 ships, but multiple studies claim that it is more than 18,000 boats in the world's oceans, reported IJR. Just off the South China Sea, countries in Oceania are seriously concerned about Chinese fishing activities, which increased proportionally with PRC's investments in infrastructures like ports, and airports.  Between 2018 and 2019, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, Salomon Islands, Vanuatu, Tonga, Fiji, Cook Islands, and Samoa joined the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). In 2020, Palau intercepted and detained Chinese DWF boats illegally fishing sea cucumber in its territorial waters. Australia, New Zealand, and Hawaii (under the USA) are the most developed countries in the region, and the presence of Chinese Trawlers in South Australia, Chinese Squid jiggers in New Zealand, and Long liners in Hawaii are a serious threat to their sovereignty, reported IJR. Source: ANI

The Government of India, in partnership with the Government of Australia and the Government of Singapore, conducted an international workshop on combating marine pollution focusing on marine plastic debris on February 14-15, the Ministry of Earth Science informed on Tuesday. The workshop, held virtually, bought together with the world's leading experts, scientists, government officials with policy expertise, and representatives from industry, innovation and informal sectors, Earth Science said in a press release. It aimed to discuss research interventions toward monitoring and assessing marine litter and plausible sustainable solutions to address the global marine plastic pollution issue. The workshop had four major sessions; the magnitude of the marine litter problem-monitoring program and research on plastic debris in the Indo-Pacific Region; best practices and technologies; solutions to prevent plastic pollution; and polymers and plastics: technology and innovations and opportunities for regional collaboration to remediate or stop plastic pollution. The sessions involved panel discussions and interactive break-out sessions to encourage discussion amongst participants from East Asia Summit countries. The East Asia Summit (EAS) is the premier forum for discussions on important strategic issues in the Indo-Pacific and a leading confidence-building mechanism. Since its inception in 2005, the EAS has been advocating regional peace, security, closer regional cooperation and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific and the Indian Ocean region. The EAS is uniquely placed to share expertise and lessons learned between regions and sub-regions faced with interlinked and similar challenges to develop sustainable transboundary solutions. EAS countries recognise the coastal and marine plastic pollution challenge. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the agenda of promoting maritime cooperation in the wider Indo-Pacific region at the 14th EAS held in Bangkok in November 2019. India, Singapore, and Australia are committed to implementing the EAS decisions. This workshop provided an impetus to EAS countries for exploring and informing each other about the challenges, questions, and solutions to marine litter - especially plastic research, use, design, disposal, recycling, and future collaborations for a plastic-free and healthy ocean for sustainable development through knowledge partners - the National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR), Chennai, an attached office of Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), the Government of Singapore and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Australia. Dr M Ravichandran, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, delivered the keynote address at the workshop. He suggested considering the application of technological tools such as remote sensing, artificial intelligence and machine learning to map the distribution of marine plastics and developing models to understand the dynamics of plastics in the Indian ocean. He also emphasized that a well-designed and tailor-made management strategy considering regional distinctiveness will significantly reduce plastics in the environment. Source: ANI  

The export of marine products registered a growth of 35 per cent to USD 6.1 billion during April-December 2021 (provisional) as compared to USD 4.5 billion during the same time period in the year 2020. As compared to April-December 2019 (USD 5.5 Billion) and April-December 2014 (USD 4.4 Billion), exports of Marine Products registered a growth of 12 per cent and 38 per cent respectively. As per a press release from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, in the month of December 2021, exports of marine products touched USD 720.51 Million, registering a growth of 28.01 per cent over USD 562.85 million logged in December 2020. The overall exports of marine products in the last Financial Year (March, 2020-April, 2021) was USD 5.96 Billion. With USD 6.11 billion scaled during the first three-quarters of FY 2021-22, the sector is very likely to exceed the all-time high of USD 7.02 billion exports achieved in FY 2017-18, despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic since January 2020, adds the release. The top 5 export destinations in April-November 2021 (latest available, share per cent in bracket) are USA (44.5 per cent), China (15.3 per cent), Japan (6.2 per cent), Vietnam (4 per cent) & Thailand (3 per cent). Frozen shrimps constitute the major share in India's marine products exports items with 74 per cent share in value terms (USD); Frozen Fish (7 per cent), Others (6 per cent) and Frozen Squid (5 per cent) constitute the other major items in the Marine Products exports basket in FY 2020-21. Other categories included primarily Surimi and Surimi analogue (imitation) products, added the release. Several exports promotion schemes for Fisheries have been implemented by the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA), a statutory body set up in 1972 under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry for the promotion of the export of marine products from India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) in May 2020 with an array of 100 diverse activities. With a budget of Rs. 20,050 crore, it is by far the largest investment to bring about Blue Revolution through sustainable and responsible development of the fisheries sector in India. PMMSY, being implemented over a period of 5 years from FY 2020-21 to FY 2024-25 in all States/Union Territories, has set a target of Rs. 1,00,000 crore fisheries export, additional 70 lakh tonnes fish production, and generation of 55 lakh employment in the years to come. Source: ANI

Celebrity Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio has congratulated the government of Bangladesh for establishing a Marine Protected Area around Saint Martin's Island, a small island in the northeastern part of the Bay of Bengal.     In a tweet on Friday DiCaprio, a candid global climate campaigner, also praised the local communities and NGOs on the issue, saying that it will protect biodiversity of the Bangladesh's only coral reef.     "Congrats to the Government of Bangladesh, local communities & NGOs on a newly established Marine Protected Area around Saint Martin's Island that  will protect an incredible community of biodiversity and provide key habitat for Bangladesh's only coral reef," DiCaprio wrote in his tweet.     St. Martin's Island, also locally known as 'Narikel Zinzira', is a small island of only three square kilometers in the northeastern part of the Bay of Bengal and about 9 km south of the tip of the Cox's Bazar-Teknaf peninsula.     Also a most admired tourist spot, St Martin's Island is a safe haven to various species of fauna.     The presence of 153 species of sea weeds, 66 species of coral, 187 species of oysters, 240 species of fish, 120 species of birds, 29 species of reptiles and 29 species of mammals were found in the St Martin's Island, according to a research report of the Department of Environment (DoE) and the UNDP.  Source: BSS AH