Key facts
- China's PLA Eastern Theatre Command has deployed new HQ-16F missiles opposite Taiwan.
- The HQ-16F missile is comparable to US Patriot PAC2 and 3 systems.
- The 73rd Group Army conducted an operational and live-fire assessment of the missile in the Gobi Desert.
- This deployment follows a Dutch warship's transit through the Taiwan Strait.
- The PLA stated its forces would remain on high alert after the Dutch warship's passage.
China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) Eastern Theatre Command has deployed new HQ-16F missiles, described as comparable to US Patriot PAC2 and 3 systems, to frontline troops facing Taiwan. State broadcaster CCTV aired footage of the 73rd Group Army, part of the Eastern Theatre Command, conducting an operational and live-fire assessment of the missile in the Gobi Desert. This deployment comes days after the PLA announced it had tracked and monitored the Dutch frigate De Ruyter during its transit through the Taiwan Strait. The PLA stated its forces would remain on high alert following the Dutch warship's passage. The De Ruyter had previously reportedly encountered electronic interference in the South China Sea, and its helicopter allegedly intruded into airspace over the Xisha Islands (Paracel Islands).