China Coast Guard (CCG; ) is the maritime security,

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

, and

law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of government who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by discovering, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms governing that society. The term en ...

service branch of the

People's Armed Police ) , abbreviation = PAP ("People's Armed Police") CAPF ("Chinese Armed Police Force"), formerly abbreviated''Wujing'' ( zh , s = 武警 , p = Wǔjǐng , l = Armed Police , labels = no ), or WJ as on vehicle license plates , patch ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. It is currently the world's largest coast guard.

Function

The CCG is known to perform mostly coastal and oceanic search and rescue or patrols, including anti-smuggling operations. During wartime it may be placed under the operational control of the

People's Liberation Army Navy The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN; ), also known as the People's Navy, Chinese Navy, or PLA Navy, is the maritime service branch of the People's Liberation Army. The PLAN traces its lineage to naval units fighting during the Chinese ...

Roles

Roles of the CCG are diverse but include: * Patrol of territorial waters and disputed territories * Anti-smuggling, anti-piracy * Maritime policing and ship inspections * Harbor and coastal security * Research and survey * Search and Rescue * Fisheries protection *

Grey-zone operations The grey-zone (also grey zone, gray zone, and gray-zone) describes the space in between peace and war in which state and non-state actors engage in competition. Definition Use of the term ''grey-zone'' is widespread in national security circles, ...

(often alongside the PLAN and People's Armed Forces Maritime Militia)

Command

After the reform in 2018, CCG consists commands (sub-bureaus) and divisions (local bureaus). The name in the parentheses is for general use.

Training

The Chinese Coast Guard conducts periodic joint-training sessions with other navies, including the US Coast Guard service. The Chinese Coast Guard has also participated in the annual North Pacific Coast Guard Agencies Forum in Alaska, along with US, Canadian, Japanese, South Korean, and Russian Coast Guards. As part of an exchange program, members of the Chinese Coast Guard service have been assigned to serve on

U.S. Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, multi ...

cutters.

History

The China Coast Guard was formed in 2013 from the maritime branch of the

Border Security Force and the other maritime law enforcement agencies in China. The unified Coast Guard is commanded by the

State Oceanic Administration The State Oceanic Administration (SOA; ) was an administrative agency subordinate to the Ministry of Land and Resources, responsible for the supervision and management of sea area in the People's Republic of China and coastal environmental prot ...

and has been in operation since July 2013. On July 1, 2018, the China Coast Guard was transferred from civilian control of the

State Council State Council may refer to: Government * State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national cabinet of South Korea, headed by the President * State Council of the People's Republic of China, the national cabinet and chief administrative auth ...

and the

, to the

, ultimately placing it under the command of the Central Military Commission. In June 2018, the China Coast Guard was granted maritime rights and law enforcement akin civilian law enforcement agencies in order to carry out contrast of illegal activities, keep peace and order, as well as safeguarding security at sea, when performing duties related to the use of marine resources, protection of marine environment, regulation of fishery, and anti-smuggling. In 2019, the United States issued a warning to China over aggressive and unsafe action by their Coast Guard and maritime militia. The Coast Guard Law allows CCG ships to use lethal force on foreign ship that do not obey order to leave Chinese waters. It took effect on February 1, 2021.

Equipment

Vessels

Chinese Coast Guard ship during DiREx-15

Chinese Coast Guard ships are painted white with blue stripe and wording China Coast Guard in English and Chinese. Typical Coast Guard ships include the 130 ton Type 218 patrol boat (100 boats), armed with twin 14.5mm machine guns, assorted speedboats, and few larger patrol ships. Up until very recently, the largest ship in Chinese Coast Guard service was the 1,500 ton Type 718 cutter (31101 Pudong). In March 2007, it was reported that the

PLAN A plan is typically any diagram or list of steps with details of timing and resources, used to achieve an objective to do something. It is commonly understood as a temporal set of intended actions through which one expects to achieve a goal. F ...

had transferred 2 Type 728 cutter (44102, ex-509 Changde; 46103, ex-510 Shaoxing) to the Coast Guard and re-numbered them as 1002 & 1003. At the time these ships were the largest vessels in the China Coast Guard inventory. In May 2017, it was reported that China had deployed the 12,000 ton China Coast Guard (CCG) 3901 cutter No. 1123 to patrol its claimed islands in the disputed South China Sea. The CCG 3901 cutter is the world's biggest coast guard cutter, and is larger than the U.S. Navy's 9,800 ton ''Ticonderoga''-class guided-missile cruisers and its 8,300-9,300 ton ''Arleigh Burke''-class guided missile destroyers. The CCG 3901 cutter is armed with 76mm H/PJ-26 rapid fire naval guns, two auxiliary guns, and two anti-aircraft guns. CCG ships are named "Haijing-XX", where XX is a number.

Personnel

CCG ships are staffed by People’s Armed Police personnel. China Coast Guard Academy is a dedicated institution that provides training for personnels to enter the CCG.

References

External links

* {{authority control Military of the People's Republic of China People's Armed Police Reserve forces Law enforcement agencies of China Auxiliary military units Coast guards State Oceanic Administration