Sometimes imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. With the increasing sword rattling between the US and China in different areas of the world, the Chinese are showing their people that maybe they just like the way the US operates.

Chinese special operations security forces conducted a mock assault on “terrorist compound” that bore more than a passing resemblance to the compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. That was the compound where Osama bin Laden lived until a raid took place by SEAL Team 6 in 2011 killed the terrorist leader of Al Qaeda.

The assault was carried on Chinese state-run television didn’t mention the similarities but there is little doubt what the compound as based off of. The recent mock raid also featured moves reminiscent of American counterterrorism tactics.

“The movements, room-clearing techniques and shooting drills are all basic special operations techniques,” Colonel David S. Maxwell explained to the New York Times, adding that there was little doubt that Chinese troops were copy American combat techniques. Mimicry may not be enough to get China where it wants to go though.

“There is a big difference between demonstrating choreographed skills and being able to conduct combat operations in the fog and friction of real war when things go wrong, as they did for the assault on Abbottabad,” Maxwell told reporters. Filming propaganda footage is noticeably different from actual in-the-field combat.

The Commander of the Chinese raid, identified as Zhang Yue, who heads the Bayingolin Special Forces Squadron of the Police forces. According to the narrator, Zhang rose through the ranks to command the unit and was described by his troops as a devil.

This isn’t the first time the Chinese have practiced on a replica compound. In 2015 they practiced an assault on one that looked eerily like the Presidential Palace in Taipei.

To read the entire article from The New York Times, click here:

Photo courtesy YouTube