The Taiwanese President, William Lai Ching-te, visited the Whampoe Military Academy in June during its 100th anniversary. He took the opportunity to remind these new cadets of their greatest national cause, to: “know their enemy and not give in to defeatism.” Relations between China and Taiwan have remained tense, with China making it clear that any declaration of formal independence would be grounds to attack the island. Wang Huning, the fourth-ranked leader in China’s ruling Communist Party, stated, “reunification is a historical necessity for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.”
For some time now, China’s military forces have stretched its boundaries near Taiwan, even acting out “war games” in May to test its ability to “seize power” should that time come. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) celebrated its 96th birthday in August 2023 and is considered one of the fastest-growing militaries in the world. Chinese leader Xi Jinping presses forward with a goal to modernize their military might by 2035. The PLA operates with a range of weapons in its arsenal, most produced in-house by Chinese arms manufacturers such as China North Industries Corporation and China South Industries Group.
The first modern assault rifle produced by the Chinese is the QBZ-95, which is now standard issue across the army, internal security force, and police. It also uses a locally designed round; some speculate it is to ensure it cannot be copied by others who may get their hands on the guns, or other countries’ ammunition would not be able to fire from it. The original design hit the market in the mid-1990s, with a recent version, the QBZ-95-1, arriving with a number of improvements to make it more combat-ready.
24/7 Wall St. reviewed a catalog of weapons used by the Chinese Special Forces produced by Military Factory, an online database of military vehicles, aircraft, and arms, to determine the guns used by Chinese Special Forces. We removed similar guns and guns that are believed to no longer be in use by the Chinese Special Forces and ranked the rest according to when they entered service. Supplemental data on the type of weapon, maximum effective range, and the caliber used by each gun also came from the Military Factory.
Why Are We Writing About China’s Special Forces?
While China primarily produces its weapons in-house, it uses a range of ammunition produced domestically and internationally, using anything from NATO to Russian rounds. Like many other forces worldwide, a certain level of cooperation takes place in order to facilitate the needs of each military power. China’s military weapons in principle use are not unlike those of the United States, focusing primarily on assault rifles and machine guns.
Here are 26 Guns that the Chinese Special Forces use.
26. Dragunov SVD
- Year entered service: 1963
- Type: Designated marksman rifle
- Maximum effective range: 4,265 ft.
- Caliber: 7.62x54mmR Soviet
- Manufacturer: Izhmash, NORINCO
25. FB PM-63 RAK
- Year entered service: 1965
- Type: Submachine gun
- Maximum effective range: 492 ft.
- Caliber: 9×19 Parabellum
- Manufacturer: Lucznik Arms, NORINCO
24. HK MP5
- Year entered service: 1966
- Type: Submachine gun
- Maximum effective range: 660 ft.
- Caliber: 9×19 parabellum
- Manufacturer: Heckler & Koch
23. Type 67
- Year entered service: 1967
- Type: Light machine gun
- Maximum effective range: 2,952 ft.
- Caliber: 7.62x54mmR
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
22. KBP AGS-17 Plamya
- Year entered service: 1970
- Type: Automatic grenade launcher
- Maximum effective range: 5,741 ft.
- Caliber: 30x19mm
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
21. Type 69
- Year entered service: 1970
- Type: Rocket-propelled grenade launcher
- Maximum effective range: 655 ft.
- Caliber: 40mm
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
20. CZ75 Phantom
- Year entered service: 1976
- Type: Semi-automatic service pistol
- Maximum effective range: 164 ft.
- Caliber: 9×19 Parabellum
- Manufacturer: Ceska Zbrojovka
19. GP-25 / GP-30 GL
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- Year entered service: 1978
- Type: Muzzle-loaded grenade launcher
- Maximum effective range: 1,312 ft.
- Caliber: 40mm
- Manufacturer: KBP Instrument Design Bureau
18. Type 64
- Year entered service: 1980
- Type: Silenced semi-automatic pistol
- Maximum effective range: 115 ft.
- Caliber: 7.62x17mm
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
17. Type 81
- Year entered service: 1983
- Type: Assault rifle
- Maximum effective range: 920 ft.
- Caliber: 7.62x39mm
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
16. HJ-8
- Year entered service: 1985
- Type: Anti-tank guided missile
- Maximum effective range: 14,760 ft.
- Caliber: 120mm
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
15. QBU-88
- Year entered service: 1988
- Type: Sniper rifle
- Maximum effective range: 2,624 ft.
- Caliber: 5.56x45mm NATO
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
14. QBB-95
- Year entered service: 1997
- Type: Assault rifle
- Maximum effective range: 2,300 ft.
- Caliber: 5.56x45mm NATO
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
13. QSZ-92
- Year entered service: 1998
- Type: Semi-automatic service pistol
- Maximum effective range: 164 ft.
- Caliber: 9×19 Parabellum
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
12. CNPMIEC FeiNn-6
- Year entered service: 1999
- Type: Man-portable air defense system
- Maximum effective range: 12,464 ft.
- Caliber: 72mm
- Manufacturer: China National Precision Machinery
11. QJY-88
- Year entered service: 1999
- Type: General purpose machine gun
- Maximum effective range: 2,955 ft.
- Caliber: 5.8x42mm HV
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
10. QBZ-03
- Year entered service: 2003
- Type: Assault rifle
- Maximum effective range: 1,475 ft.
- Caliber: 5.56x45mm NATO
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
9. QCW-05
- Year entered service: 2005
- Type: Suppressed submachine gun
- Maximum effective range: 985 ft.
- Caliber: 5.8x21mm
- Manufacturer: China South Industries Group
8. Zijiang M99
- Year entered service: 2005
- Type: Anti-material rifle
- Maximum effective range: 5,000 ft.
- Caliber: 12.7x108mm
- Manufacturer: Zijiang Machinery
7. JS 9
- Year entered service: 2006
- Type: Silenced submachine gun
- Maximum effective range: 410 ft.
- Caliber: 9×19 Parabellum
- Manufacturer: China South Industries Group
6. QSW-06
- Year entered service: 2006
- Type: Suppressed semi-automatic pistol
- Maximum effective range: 165 ft.
- Caliber: 5.8x21mm
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
5. QX-04
- Year entered service: 2011
- Type: Semi-automatic service pistol
- Maximum effective range: 165 ft.
- Caliber: 9×19 Parabellum
- Manufacturer: China South Industries Group
4. LG3
- Year entered service: 2011
- Type: Automatic grenade launcher
- Maximum effective range: 7,215 ft.
- Caliber: 40x53mm
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
3. LG4
- Year entered service: 2011
- Type: Multiple grenade launcher
- Maximum effective range: 1,235 ft.
- Caliber: 40x53mm
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
2. CS/LR4
- Year entered service: 2012
- Type: Bolt-action sniper rifle
- Maximum effective range: 3,610 ft.
- Caliber: 7.62x51mm NATO
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
1. NSG-85
- Year entered service: 2014
- Type: Designated marksman rifle
- Maximum effective range: 2,625 ft.
- Caliber: 7.62x54mmR
- Manufacturer: NORINCO
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