Inside the secret spy den building China's attack drones
At first glance it could be a school classroom, with bright fluorescent lights, posters on the wall and long tables down the middle.
But look closer, and the students are actually Chinese paramilitary police officers, the notices are instructions on how to build attack drones, and there are CCTV cameras watching their every move.
This is the workshop for one of China's feared armed police units, in the eastern Shandong province.
In a rare glimpse into China's arms manufacturing, a dozen or so officers can be seen seated at the long tables tinkering with their creations. Another 40 or so unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are mounted on the wall in front of them as they work.
Credit: CCTV
Speaking to Chinese state media, which produced the footage, one uniformed officer explains that each of the drones are assembled by a member of the People's Armed Police (PAP) force in Shandong. For a skilled worker it should take 'no more than two hours' to complete one device.
Known as 'China's other army,' the PAP is one of the country's police forces responsible for national security.
Unlike the civilian police force, which handles routine law enforcement, the PAP falls under the Central Military Commission and is often deployed for border security, riot control and counterterrorism, and has been part of the violent campaign against the Uighurs in Xinjiang province and in Tibet.
While the exact number of officers is unknown, reports estimate it could be anywhere from 500,000 to 1.5 million, spread out over 32 regional commands, each with at least one mobile unit.
The direction of travel is clear. In 2010 the PAP budget was £6.8 billion. By last year, it had more than tripled, to £15.9 billion. The unit in Shandong is the latest example of what it has been spending that money on.
The drones are not just for surveillance.
In a combat drill last month, two members of a PAP unit in western Yunnan province worked together to take out a target behind a closed window. The first drone smashed the glass and the second flew through the gap to strike the target.
Other camera drones can be armed with grenades, which are dropped on perceived threats.
And then there are disruptor drones, fitted with systems that can locate, track and 'soft-kill' enemy UAVs, according to state television.
Training is intense. Before being allowed to fly actual drones, the operators have to work on simulators for about two months, according to state television. Then they are let lose on complicated aerial assault courses, with tight turns and high speed manoeuvres, before being allowed to use them in the field.
Credit: CCTV
Experts have said that drones would be central to any conflict between China and Taiwan, should Beijing decide to attack the island, which it claims as its own despite staunch opposition from the government in Taipei.
Both China and Taiwan's interest in drone warfare has expanded since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 given the central role that UAVs have played in the conflict.
Earlier this month, China announced that its new drone mothership, known as the Jiu Tan, which is capable of releasing swarms of 100 kamikaze UAVs at once, would launch on its maiden voyage in June.
In Shandong, the officer in the video explains that the team is producing first-person view (FPV) drones of different sizes, from 3-inch to 9-inch models, at what he calls the 'UAV innovation studio'.
In the footage, the personnel are seen assembling drone frames as well as testing camera and antenna placements. The UAVs are designed for both reconnaissance and precision strikes.
The studio also has a 3D printer, which is used to design and manufacture various components. The officer explains that it is currently making landing pads, which it can print in three minutes.
He then shows the camera a drone with a 3D-printed ammunition mounting platform, which he says can carry different types of weapons, 'significantly enhancing the drone's strike capabilities.'
There is variation in the vehicles too.
Footage shows the unit using drones with long fibre optic cables, as seen in Ukraine and Russia. These drones do not rely on radio signals and therefore cannot be jammed by enemy signal blockers.
While drones can be used for humanitarian purposes – such as during disaster relief operations – in the hands of the PAP they can also be weapons of oppression.
The force's focus in recent years has been on Xinjiang province, where it has been responsible for the persecution of Uyghur Muslims, as well as Tibet.
Xinjiang hosts the largest concentration of PAP mobile units in the country with an estimated 200,000 troops. They have been using surveillance drones for a number of years.
Both Uyghurs and Tibetans have been targeted by the central government in Beijing for decades, with abuses ranging from mass detentions to forced sterilisations.
The Uyghur Human Rights Project accused the PAP of being 'among the prime actors in carrying out the genocide' against the Uyghurs in Xinjiang. With their new tools, the PAP shows no sign of changing course.
Beyond its domestic role, experts have also said that the PAP would likely play a key role in any future attack against Taiwan.
In January, Chinese state media reported that some PAP officers in Fujian province had taken part in official combat training, which suggested that in the event of war, the forces could join the fight as a military unit.
Lyle Goldstein, an Asia expert at Defense Priorities, a Washington-based foreign policy think tank, said that since China views Taiwan as one of its provinces, Beijing would see it as 'completely legal' to use armed police.
The PAP could also play a central role if martial law were declared following an invasion of Taiwan.
The International Institute for Strategic Studies said: 'As the PAP's mission sets have become more focused, their more centralised command structure, reorganisation and enhanced use of modern technologies have turned the PAP into a more potent force ready to carry out the CCP's vision of 'correct policy' and maintaining the Party's control.'
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