China Deploys “Hunter-Killer” Drones to Patrol Southern Borders

By Anisha Francis / December 16, 2018;

Photo: Xinhua

Less than a fortnight after reporting successful negotiations with India over border disputes and political trust, China has deployed military grade drones capable of carrying high grade weapons to patrol its borders. According to reports in the state-run Global Times, GJ-2 Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) have been deployed along the borders between China-occupied Tibet, Nepal and India as well as the borders with Pakistan in the Xinjiang region, since these areas are too mountainous and inhospitable for troops to man.

The GJ-2 is a long endurance drone, built to stay airborne for up to 20 hours and can achieve an altitude of 9,000 feet and speeds of 370 kmph. This new model of UAV is touted as China’s response to the United States Air Force’s MQ-9 Reaper, the world’s most feared drone, capable of carrying massive payloads over long distances— rightly nicknamed “hunter-killers”.

This move comes at a time when both countries had decided to jointly safeguard peace and tranquility in the border areas through mutual communication and trust during the 21st round of talks held between Indian and Chinese representatives in Sichuan on November 26.

While UAVs are utilised by several countries to survey their borders, they are usually not militarised. The use of high tech drones by the Chinese government is not new – the robotic doves that China uses to keep a close eye over their citizens as well as spy on ethnic minorities in the Xinjiang region made international headlines a few months ago for their blatant violation of privacy, as well as the amazing realistic appearance and flight movements of the drones.

Apart from the possible border violations with India, China’s drones are also expected to choke the escape routes used by Tibetan refugees attempting to cross over to India via Nepal. With increasing scrutiny of the Nepal border by Chinese border forces, the number of Tibetans crossing over into exile has been decreasing every year – Phayul has reported that according to their sources, in 2017 only 50 refugees made it through the Nepal border into India for a life of relative freedom.