China is opening up a new situation in the international arms trade market! The same equipment of the People's Liberation Army was publicly displayed in Serbia for the first time. The Cypriot side's move this time may be that the drunkard does not mean to drink.
Preamble:
A few days ago, the Serbian armed forces for the first time publicly demonstrated the Chinese-made Hongqi-17AE short-range air defense system. Serbian Prime Minister Vucevic's remarks gave a very high affirmation to the strength of China's weaponry.
(Hongqi-17AE can effectively intercept low, small and slow targets)
1. The same equipment of the People's Liberation Army, which made its public appearance in Serbia for the first time
According to the Global Times, at a commemorative event, Serbia publicly displayed a large number of advanced weapons. Among them, there are not only Serbian domestic equipment, such as M-84AS main battle tanks, "Pegasus" drones, etc.; There are also two Chinese-made weapons, the FK-3 medium- and long-range surface-to-air missile system and the Hongqi-17AE short-range air defense system.
This was the first public demonstration of the Hongqi-17AE and attracted a lot of attention. According to the Serbian side, this air defense system has a fast response speed and is capable of simultaneously attacking four targets at a distance of 15 kilometers and an altitude of about 8 kilometers, destroying air targets at short and medium distances, and is also capable of shooting while driving to effectively intercept air attacks.
Subsequently, Vucevic publicly stated that the Hongqi-17AE would work perfectly with the "most powerful weapon" FK-3 anti-aircraft missile system to better defend the Serbian sky.
The Hongqi-17AE is an export derivative of the Hongqi-17A air defense system. Hongqi-17A is a multifunctional air defense missile system independently developed by China, which is mainly developed for the accompanying air defense needs of the PLA medium brigade, using a 6×6 wheeled chassis, which greatly reduces its weight and costs.
(Hongqi-17AE public display)
In addition, the Hongqi-17A uses an active phased array radar, which greatly increases the range of the missile, which is not a problem at all to deal with low-altitude threats, and will support a reliable air defense umbrella for mechanized troops.
In fact, Serbia's purchase of Chinese Hongqi-17AE has long been known.
During the previous Belt and Road International Summit, the Chinese side met with the Serbian defense minister and presented a set of state gifts, including a very delicate model of the Hongqi-17AE missile launcher.
Subsequently, there was continuous news that Serbia would purchase China's Hongqi-17AE until the end of January this year, when Serbian President Vucic publicly confirmed the news. Now, the public appearance of the Hongqi-17AE also corroborates this.
2. In response to air threats, the Hongqi-17AE has a killer feature
In recent years, drones have played an increasing role in several local wars that have broken out around the world. How to effectively deal with drones has become a new problem facing countries.
After years of development, China's progress in the field of counter-drones can be described as "advancing by leaps and bounds". Today, the Hongqi-17AE radar has outstanding performance and can effectively detect "low, slow and small" UAVs; The ability to shoot on the go further increases its survivability on the battlefield.
It is worth mentioning that the Hongqi-17AE also has a "fire support vehicle", which can launch the existing anti-aircraft missiles of the Hongqi-17AE together, and can also launch smaller and larger anti-aircraft cruise missiles to intercept drone swarms.
At that time, in the anti-drone operation, the Hongqi-17AE will act as an information node and a fire node, and can even send a fire support vehicle to attract the enemy's attention.
(FK-3 anti-aircraft missile system)
For Serbia, although the FK-3 medium and long-range surface-to-air missile system has been introduced, there are still shortcomings in the defense of medium and low altitudes, and the Russian-made "Pantsir-S1" was introduced before, but due to the impact of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, after only one battalion of equipment arrived, the follow-up equipment could not be delivered. In this case, Serbia urgently needs an air defense system with strong detection performance and excellent independent combat performance, and the Hongqi-17AE has become the best choice.
The reason why Serbia wants to vigorously introduce air defense systems is naturally inseparable from the actions of the Kosovo authorities. In July last year, Kosovo's regional leader Kurti released photos of his inspection of the Turkish TB-2 drones, bluntly stating that the Kosovo Security Forces had increased their military budget by more than 100 percent.
At the same time, after the introduction of the TB-2 drone, Kosovo has also obtained a variety of small and medium-sized drones through other means, and at the same time requisitioned relevant personnel to operate drones to fight Serbian troops, which is obviously one of the lessons that Kosovo has learned from the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
3. The drunkard does not mean to drink? Vučić had already made his words clear
Kosovo unilaterally declared "independence" in 2008 and was recognized by the United States and some other Western countries, but Serbia has always insisted on its sovereignty over Kosovo, and relations between Serbia and Kosovo remain tense to this day.
On the Kosovo issue, the United States, NATO, and the European Union have all along been pulling sides, knowing that Kosovo is Serbian territory, but they have always supported the separatist forces in the region to get rid of Serbia's control, and even sought to let the region join the United Nations in order to achieve the goal of splitting Serbia.
In the face of the urgent situation, Serbia has chosen to look at China, and the Serbian army, which has obtained the Hongqi-17AE, will effectively respond to the threat of Kosovo drones.
The export of the Hongqi-17AE to Serbia not only marks the beginning of a new stage in Sino-Serbian military cooperation, but also serves as a powerful deterrent to foreign forces that are stirring up trouble behind the scenes and stirring up conflicts in the Kosovo region.
(Serbian President Vučić)
What's more, Vučić has long made it clear why he wants to buy Chinese air defense systems, and he bluntly said that this is to show a strong deterrent to potential aggressors and show the outside world that Serbia will not become anyone's sandbag, and Serbia will defend its country by itself, and not join NATO as a hyena.
This is the first public display of the Hongqi-17AE in Serbia, which is probably the same meaning.