The new aircraft carrier Fujian, a key asset of China’s expanding navy, will undergo its first sea trials on Wednesday, state media announced. This is China’s third aircraft carrier and the largest ship ever built by the country which wants to strengthen its deterrence and projection capabilities in the Asia-Pacific.
The “Fujian”, named after the Chinese province opposite Taiwan, joins the first two aircraft carriers, the “Liaoning” and the “Shandong”. The boat left the Jiangnan shipyard, in eastern Shanghai, around 8 a.m. local time, the national Xinhua news agency said. The tests will “primarily test the reliability and stability of the aircraft carrier’s propulsion systems and electrical systems,” the agency added.
The largest navy in the world
In recent years, China has begun a massive expansion of its naval forces, seeking to expand its regional influence and challenge the United States’ alliance system. Tensions have notably erupted in the South China Sea, which Beijing claims almost entirely, and near the island of Taiwan, which China wants to bring back into its orbit, where it has deployed the Shandong aircraft carrier.
According to a report published in January by the American Congressional Research Service, citing the Pentagon, China has the largest navy in the world and is targeting 435 ships by 2030. This reinforcement aims to “make militarily address the situation with Taiwan, if necessary” as well as “achieve a greater degree of control or dominance over the maritime area near China, particularly the South China Sea,” according to the report.
China wants its navy to be able to deter “U.S. intervention in a conflict in the maritime zone near China.” The Fujian is expected to feature more advanced takeoff systems, allowing China’s air force to deploy planes carrying larger payloads and more fuel, according to analysts at the CSIS think tank in Washington. “The ship is expected to become the largest surface combatant in the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy and significantly improve China’s naval capabilities,” they wrote.