Apr 1, 2013
Translated by Ch Yi

The Chinese military and armed police started to introduce new license plates on April 1.

All military vehicles are expected to have the new plates by the end of the month and the older plates, which were introduced in 2004, will no longer be used.

According to Xiang Yang (向阳), a senior official from the Air Force Logistics Department, the new system is being introduced to curb vehicle misuse. According to a report carried by the Xinhua News Agency, Mr. Xiang recently introduced the new vehicle license plates and took questions from reporters.

Under the new system, luxury car brands like Mercedes Benz, BMW and Landover will not be allowed to receive military license plates unless they have been registered as military equipment. Cars with engine capacities larger than 3 liters and worth more than 450,000 yuan are also banned from using the new military plates.

However, similar claims were also made when the current plates were introduced in 2004.

Special technology has also been incorporated into the new license plate system so that when a vehicle with military plates passes through a toll station, a scanning system will be able to automatically determine if the plates are fake or not. Vehicles with fake license plates will not be permitted to pass and an immediate notification will be sent to the relevant military organs.

"In the age of full media (全媒体时代), supervision from the internet is a two-edged sword. It helps us to fight corruption but it also damages the reputation of the military. The attention paid to military vehicles on the internet reflects how much people care about the integrity of the military," said Xiang Yang.

Mr Xiang said that the new system was an an opportunity for the military to solve the problem at its root.

"Any unit and individual that privately leases, lends or embezzles military plates, or those using military vehicles for private purposes, will face severe punishment."

Links and Sources
Xinhua News Agency: 空军新式车牌首度公布 空后军交部向阳部长答记者问