China “leaks” aircraft carrier program
China announced in a semi-official way that it has two aircraft carriers under construction in Shanghai. This is a surprising piece of news since the two new ships seem to be in addition to the “Shi Lang,” which is under refitting in Dalian. Initially built by URSS for the Black Sea Fleet, “Shi Lang” was sold by Ukraine to a group of Macau businessmen to be turned into a casino. Later, it was transferred to northern China, at Dalian, to be reconverted for military use.
China plans to have at least several aircraft carriers in the Pacific and the Indian Ocean by the middle of the century. Although the US naval establishment does not seem to be impressed, China’s neighbors, especially Japan, Korea, India and some South East Asian nations could get quite nervous.
“Two aircraft carriers are being built at the Jiangnan shipyard in Shanghai,” a source with ties to China’s Communist Party leadership told Reuters, requesting anonymity because he was not authorized to talk about the program.
China’s Defense Ministry has confirmed the existence of one carrier, a former Soviet vessel that was bought from Ukraine in 1998 and was once destined to become a floating casino.
That vessel, the Shi Lang, will be used for training and research purposes, ministry spokesman Geng Yansheng said, seeking to reassure other countries that China would stick to its defensive military policy.
Beijing’s rationale for having an aircraft carrier is more than just about modernizing a navy whose most notable engagements of the past few years have been territorial skirmishes in the South China Sea with other smaller nations.
Sending naval vessels further afield, to the waters off Somalia to fight pirates, and through the southern Japanese islands, has also partly been about ensuring trade routes are protected.
China frets about the powerful U.S. military presence close to its shores, in particular U.S. bases in Japan and South Korea, and Washington’s close but unofficial ties with Taiwan, the self-ruled island Beijing claims as its own.
“Aircraft carriers are essential for China primarily to defend its territory and territorial waters and bring a semblance of parity among the world’s big powers,” Wang Baokun, a defense studies professor at Beijing’s Renmin University, wrote in the China Daily earlier this month.
via China building aircraft carriers; neighbors worried – World news – Asia-Pacific – China – msnbc.com.
Some US naval observers believe that China has much to learn before being able to operate the complex operations demanded by a modern aircraft carrier. Unfortunately, this reminds of the 1930s cockiness, when Japanese fliers and aircraft carriers were supposed to be incapable of mastering Western technology. See details below
