China is building at least SIX more destroyers

2022-08-25

China is building at least SIX more destroyers as part of Beijing’s bid to develop a navy that can rival America’s

Images show five hulls of Luyang III-class Type 052 destroyers being built
At least one more Type 052 destroyer is under construction near Shanghai
The six destroyers will join China’s existing fleet of 25 Type 052 destroyers

China is building at least six more guided-missile destroyers as part of Beijing’s bid to develop a navy that can rival America’s, new evidence suggests.

Images posted on the Chinese social media platform Weibo show five hulls of the Luyang III-class Type 052 destroyer under construction at the state-owned Dalian Shipyard in Liaoning province, northeast China.

At least one more Type 052 destroyer is being build at the Jiangnan Changxing shipyard, northeast of Shanghai, reports the defence site Naval News.

The six destroyers, armed with tactical cruise missiles and torpedoes, will join China’s existing fleet of 25 Type 052 destroyers.

Beijing has not confirmed that the six Type 052 destroyers are under construction.

But Chinese analysts told the Community Party newspaper Global Times that given that Beijing is wanting to modernise its national defence by 2035, ‘it is not unexpected if China is indeed building more advanced warships, particularly amid the current turbulent global security situation’.

China’s navy has been building ships at a furious pace and now boasts the largest naval force in the world by number of hulls.

A Type 052D destroyer of China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), provides an escort ahead of the Liaoning aircraft carrier into the Lamma Channel as it arrives in Hong Kong territorial waters in 2017

China’s armed forces has a total of 777 warships, compared to the US Navy’s 490 and the UK Royal Navy’s 73. But the US has far more destroyers – 92 in total – compared to China’s 41 and the UK’s six.

Yet China’s warships have been growing in sophistication, with the Type 052 destroyer, also known as the Luyang III-class, featuring 64 vertical launch systems for surface to air missiles, a rocket propelled torpedo and tactical cruise missiles.

The Type 052D, which also features a 130mm main gun, is considered the equivalent to the US Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.

The destroyers are part of China’s military buildup aimed at deterring a foreign intervention in the event of an attack on Taiwan, the self-governing island Beijing claims as its own and threatens to annex by force.

Such a conflict would almost certainly draw in the United States, which provides Taiwan with defensive weapons and is legally required to treat threats to the island as matters of ‘grave concern,’ along with its treaty allies, the most important and closest in geographical proximity being Japan.

It comes after China carried out its largest-eve military exercises around Taiwan after a visit this month by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The trip infuriated Beijing, which saw it as a U.S. attempt to interfere in China’s internal affairs.

The six destroyers, armed with tactical cruise missiles and torpedoes, will join China’s existing fleet of 25 Type 052 destroyers (pictured)

In March, China said it would spend 7.1% more on defence this year, setting the spending figure at 1.45 trillion yuan ($211.62 billion), though many experts suspect that is not the true figure, an assertion the government disputes.

China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy, or PLAN, has been modernizing for more than a decade to become more of a ‘blue water’ force — one capable of operating globally rather than being restricted to remaining closer to the Chinese mainland.

In June, Beijing launched a new-generation aircraft – the Type 003 carrier – in a milestone for the country as it is the first such ship to be both designed and built in China.

Equipped with the latest weaponry and aircraft-launch technology, the Type 003 ship’s capabilities are thought to rival those of Western carriers, as Beijing seeks to turn its navy, already the world’s largest, into a multi-carrier force.

The Type 003 employs a catapult launch, which experts had said appears to be an electromagnetic-type system like one originally developed by the U.S. Navy.

Such a system puts less stress on the aircraft than older steam-type catapult launch systems, and the use of a catapult means that the ship will be able to launch a broader variety of aircraft, which is necessary for China to be able to project naval power at a greater range.

In June, Beijing launched a new-generation aircraft – the Type 003 carrier (pictured) – in a milestone for the country as it is the first such ship to be both designed and built in China

Meanwhile, China has been continuing its military activities near Taiwan, though on a reduced scale.

Live-fire drills will take place in a coastal part of China’s Fujian province on Friday and Saturday, just north of the tiny Taiwan-controlled Wuchiu islands in the Taiwan Strait, Fujian authorities said on Wednesday, announcing a no-sail zone.

China is spending on advanced equipment, including stealthy fighters and aircraft carriers, which Taiwan is trying to counter by putting more effort into weapons such as missiles that can strike far into its giant neighbour’s territory.

China has not ruled out using force to bring the island under its control. Taiwan rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims, saying that the People’s Republic of China has never ruled the island and that only Taiwan’s people can decide their future.

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