Forbes
Date:Dec 9, 2020
By: David AxeForbes Staff

If China invades Taiwan and succeeds in landing troops on the island country’s southwestern beaches, expect brutal tank battles to help decide the outcome.

The Taiwanese army on paper possesses around 1,200 main battle tanks—480 American-made M-60A3s plus 450 CM-11s and 250 CM-12s. The CM-11 pairs a modified M-48 turret with an M-60 chassis. The CM-12 is an M-48 with the same modified turret as the CM-11.

These tanks are old. The youngest, the M-60s, date from the 1970s. Taipei recently bought 108 new M-1s from the United States for $1.3 billion in order to begin replacing some of its oldest and weariest tanks.

The first M-1 isn’t due to arrive until 2023. And once all hundred-or-so of the new tanks are in service, the Republic of China army still will possess a thousand aged tanks.   [FULL  STORY]