China building world's largest amphibious assault ship, US concerned
A model of the Chinese Navy's amphibious assault ship (Getty Images)
China has accelerated the construction of a Type 076 amphibious assault ship on Changxing Island near Shanghai. This new military vessel, known as the Yunan class, could be launched as early as 2025 and is expected to be one of the largest of its kind in the world, raising concerns in the United States and other countries, citing Reuters.
The report highlights that while China is rapidly building one of the world’s largest military ships, the US and European nations are spending time modernizing older frigates or destroyers.
Journalists refer to data from US naval intelligence, which suggests that China's overall shipbuilding capacity now exceeds that of the US by more than 632 times. Notably, Beijing can also mobilize dozens of additional shipyards to further accelerate construction.
Over the past decade, China has more than doubled its fleet of guided-missile destroyers to 42 units and has launched 23 new destroyers. The report points out that during the same period, the US built only 11.
Since 2017, China has built eight missile cruisers, while the US has built none. The journalists suggest that this disparity is a major concern for American officials.
China’s significant naval production capacity is supported by an even larger civilian shipbuilding sector. The report says that in 1999, Chinese shipyards accounted for only 5% of the world's annual commercial shipping tonnage, whereas today that share exceeds 50%.
In 2023, Chinese shipyards secured nearly 60% of new orders for commercial vessels. According to Reuters, this sharply contrasts with the pace of construction in the US, which produces only 15-25 new commercial ships annually, representing less than 5% of the global total.
The speed of China's naval construction and the growth of its fleet, which now surpasses that of the US in terms of the number of ships, is causing concern among Western partners. There is increasing apprehension about the potential threat of conflict over Taiwan.
According to Reuters, US officials claim that Chinese leader Xi Jinping has ordered his military to be prepared for an invasion of Taiwan by 2027. However, journalists note that Beijing currently denies these assertions.
The Washington Post previously reported that the Taiwanese government is preparing its citizens for a possible Chinese invasion.
Recently, it was revealed that the, though they may be strengthening their nuclear arsenal.
