Why China will be watching as Ukraine’s marines attack Russian troops | Defence in Depth

Marine units, amphibious forces, naval infantry, however you want to describe them, offer military commanders a niche capability: the ability to approach the often overlooked flanks of rivers and the sea and launch an assault. Or, threaten to launch an assault. Projecting military force from the sea onto the land has always been a tricky business. But with 40 per cent of the world’s population and many economic and political centres of power located within 60 miles of the coast, dominating the littoral zone - the bit of the earth where rivers and seas meet land, plus a bit extra on either side - has always been a critical task for the military.     The problem is that land-based systems to target troop ships and aircraft carriers now have ranges of hundreds of miles, all part of what the military calls an Anti-Access Area Denial, or A2AD, bubble. How to safely penetrate and operate inside an enemy’s A2AD bubble is evident today in Ukraine and is focussing minds thinking about a potential conflict over Taiwan in the near tomorrow. #ukrainewar #ukraine #china #russia Find our Defence in Depth playlist here: For our podcast Ukraine: The Latest, visit: Subscribe to The Telegraph with our special offer: just £1 for 3 months. Start your free trial now: Get the latest headlines: and are websites of The Telegraph, the UK’s best-selling quality daily newspaper providing news and analysis on UK and world events, business, sport, lifestyle and culture.