Russian-Chinese collaboration on 5G and satellite technologies could give Russia an advantage on the battlefield in Ukraine and could feasibly be applied in other theaters, including a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a report by the Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security (RUSI) published on Friday said.
Russia and China have already tested the use of shared 5G technology to control uncrewed dump trucks at a Russian mine, and have tested the integration of their respective navigation systems, Russia’s GLONASS and China’s BeiDou, the report said.
“In Ukraine, GLONASS has already enabled Russian missile and drone strikes via satellite correction and supported communications between Russian troops,” the report said, adding that “Russia could exploit BeiDou’s ability to facilitate the navigation and tracking of autonomous
Photo: AP
vehicles for strategic attacks with missiles and drones.”
Russia has already entered into a number of agreements with China on the development of 5G, with Russia’s MTS and Beeline signing deals with China’s Huawei, the report said. Huawei and MTS set data-transfer speed records in 2021 after they launched commercial 5G services in Moscow, while Huawei and Beeline collaborated to facilitate remote surgical operations performed by Russia’s Global Medical System Hospital, it said.
On the battlefield, 5G would facilitate enhanced tracking of military objects, faster transferring of soldiers’ biometrics or high-resolution drone images, and enhanced communications, including between autonomous vehicles, it said, adding that China could help Russia meet its needs with 5G.
China’s BeiDou would also be helpful to Russia on the battlefield, as Russia had agreed for China to build a BeiDou monitoring system in the Russian town of Obninsk, which is near Ukraine, it said.
“Russia has repeatedly tested GLONASS/BeiDou compatibility on Russian transport routes along the Belt and Road corridor,” it said. “Tentative results from 2017 and 2018 claimed improved satellite navigation in 100% of monitored cases.”
The improved satellite data could be used by Russia in Ukraine to collect battlefield imagery, weather and terrain data, and to improve logistics management, track troop movements, and increase the accuracy of identifying and destroying ground targets, it said.
RUSI research analyst and co-author of the report Jack Crawford said that although cooperation between China and Russia has not always been smooth sailing, Russia has gained an advantage in its war efforts through working with China.
Cooperation between the countries would also bolster China’s 5G and satellite capabilities, which are of great significance to its potential plans for military aggression toward Taiwan, he said.
Broadly speaking, Russia’s willingness to cooperate with China, Iran and North Korea to continue its invasion of Ukraine also means that a deeper rift between these governments and the West is beginning to appear, and it is increasingly difficult to bridge, the authors said.
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
Representative to the US Alexander Yui delivered a letter from the government to US president-elect Donald Trump during a meeting with a former Trump administration official, CNN reported yesterday. Yui on Thursday met with former US national security adviser Robert O’Brien over a private lunch in Salt Lake City, Utah, with US Representative Chris Stewart, the Web site of the US cable news channel reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “During that lunch the letter was passed along, and then shared with Trump, two of the sources said,” CNN said. O’Brien declined to comment on the lunch, as did the Taipei
A woman who allegedly attacked a high-school student with a utility knife, injuring his face, on a Taipei metro train late on Friday has been transferred to prosecutors, police said yesterday. The incident occurred near MRT Xinpu Station at about 10:17pm on a Bannan Line train headed toward Dingpu, New Taipei City police said. Before police arrived at the station to arrest the suspect, a woman surnamed Wang (王) who is in her early 40s, she had already been subdued by four male passengers, one of whom was an off-duty Taipei police officer, police said. The student, 17, who sustained a cut about
RSS