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The key remaining question is, "Where will the Chinese go from here?" The secrecy surrounding the future of the Type 98 is still fairly intact, but there is enough information available to piece together what may be next for the Type 98. A model of this next step for the Type 98 is actually just starting to roll off the production lines in Pakistan. The tank in question is the Al-Khalid and it could very well represent, not the actual tank, but a critical cooperative relationship between the Chinese and the Ukrainians. The Al-Khalid is the result of a three-way development effort involving China, Pakistan, and Ukraine. While the level of Ukrainian participation is unconfirmed, published reports have confirmed that the Al-Khalid uses a Ukrainian engine and transmission, and that a number of these same components were recently supplied directly to China. As opposed to developing a new tank, the Ukrainians have been hard at work rebuilding and upgrading their existing MBT designs, with the T-72-120, T-72MP, and T-80UD/ Object 478BEh clearly showing the results. In fact, the success of this effort can be seen by the recently completed delivery of 320 Ukrainian T-80UD/ Object 478BEh MBTs to Pakistan, which makes Ukraine the world's leading exporter of T-80 series tanks.

Interestingly enough, at about the same time the Ukrainians announced the development of their new 120mm-armed T-84-120 MBT, information concerning a new variant of the Chinese Type 98 called the Type 98B began to appear. The T-84-120 "Oplot" is a new variant of the Ukrainian T-84 MBT that mounts one of apparently two or three different 120mm main guns in a new turret, fitted with a bustle- mounted autoloader. The incorporation of a turret bustle-mounted auto-loader (instead of the Soviet/Russian style carousel autoloader) is a huge advance for Ukrainian tank design; and reaffirms the advantages and maturity of modern Ukrainian tanks over their Russian competitors. The T-84-120 (fitted with the Swiss Compact 120mm main gun) is the Ukrainian tank currently competing in the Turkish tank competition. This confirmed tank development relationship between China and Ukraine and the timely announcements revealing both the T-84-120 and the Type 98B, point to a relationship between these two designs. In fact, much of the speculation concerning the Type 98B includes its use of a bustle-mounted autoloader in a new turret.

The Type 98 is a significant tank for the Chinese and for their potential adversaries. It represents a modern heavy armor threat in an era where some countries seem to be moving away from the proven mobile protected fire-power offered by the MBT. One thing is clear, the Type 98 is a post-Desert Storm tank that incorporates the lessons the Chinese learned from that conflict; lessons that will characterize the next battlefield.

[1] When the ARMOR article was reprinted in the February 2001 issue of the Chinese military magazine WuChi (WEAPON), the article was re-titled from "New Beast from the East" to "Heroic Lions from the East."