Chinese Naval Power

Summary: Since at least 1996, China has steadily been building the size of its navy and improving its modernity, evidently with a view towards building a "blue water" fleet that could project Chinese military influence at least throughout the Indian Ocean. Although China lagged far behind the United States in early 2010 - for example, as of March 2010, it had no aircraft carriers, although the leading Chinese admiral was quoted as saying one was planned - most analysts agreed that Beijing intended to match its growing economic influence with military influence and that a bigger navy was part of that plan. Most analysts observed that one key goal of China's naval building program was aimed at modernizing the existing fleet as well as adding more ships. In addition to building newer and more ships, China obtained bases or rights to refuel ships in the Indian Ocean, underscoring its competition with India for influence in the region. Most of the world's oil exports flow through the Indian Ocean from the Persian Gulf, either bound for China and Japan or for Europe and/or the United States via the Suez Canal. China, in early 2010, had already dispatched ships to help combat Somali pirates operating off the eastern coast of Africa.

In parallel with dramatic economic growth, China has steadily built a larger navy that, in the second decade of the twenty-first century, was considered the world's second-largest, behind the United States. Most analysts believe the main focus of China's new-found naval prowess is the Indian Ocean, the route for transporting vital oil supplies from the Middle East, as well as commercial shipping between China and Europe.

Relatively little official information is released by Beijing about its military spending. Most analysts believe China's annual military budget is around $215 billion a year. The Chinese Navy is one major recipient of this spending as China seeks to replicate its former influence in the Indian Ocean, last seen during the Ming dynasty of the early fifteenth century.

Size of Chinese Navy. In January 2010, the Pentagon accidentally posed its classified estimate of the size of the Chinese Navy. That estimate, with comparisons to the United States Navy, was:

Since the release of this information, China’s naval power has only increased, as has the visibility of its growing dominance with participation in international maritime exercises and its willingness to participate in global maritime needs, such as sending hospital ships to populations in need. In 2023, China had multiple aircraft carriers, the largest global battle force, and was considered overall the second-largest naval power in the world, behind the US.

Strategic Considerations. Analysts offer various explanations for China's apparent determination to build a larger "blue water" navy. Among them:

Taiwan. Since the victory in China of the Communist Party, the United States - and the US Navy in particular - has effectively guaranteed the security of Taiwan, which both the government on the mainland and on the island agree is an integral part of China. The relative weakness of the Chinese Navy compared to the US Navy has come to an end, and with that development, the security of Taiwan from possible invasion from the mainland may become an issue.

Oil supplies. Like other areas of the world, China depends on oil shipments via sea from the Middle East. These shipments pass through the narrow Straights of Hormuz from the Gulf into the Indian Ocean, and analysts believe China is eager to be able to defend that supply route. Similar strategic considerations are attached to the Straights of Malacca between Malaysia and Indonesia at the eastern end of the Indian Ocean.

Expanded interests in Africa. As part of its continuing search for secure oil supplies, China has invested heavily in African countries at the eastern end of the Indian Ocean. Analysts believe that protecting these interests, along with future potential shipping lanes, is a consideration in the buildup of the Chinese Navy. China has already sent naval vessels to the waters off the coast of Somalia to help protect against pirate attacks, although the Chinese Navy is not part of an international task force coordinated by the United States for the same purpose. At least one Chinese commercial ship was among those seized for ransom by Somali pirates.

Competition with India. Most analysts mention China's competition with India as a major contributory consideration in Beijing's naval buildup. This competition has several different aspects - China's relations with Pakistan, for example - and the ability to project military power in the Indian Ocean is just one of them. As part of its naval buildup, China has negotiated a naval base at Gwadar, Pakistan, near the Gulf, and negotiated with Bangladesh to expand naval access, as well as building naval bases near the Straight of Malacca in Burma (Myanmar).

The expansion of the Chinese Navy throughout the 2010s and continuing into the 2020s has been rapid and substantial. The Chinese Navy amassed vessels, technology, and weaponry to make it one of the dominant navies in the world, far greater than its regional rivals, including India, Taiwan, and Japan. Particularly concerning is China’s increased interest in overseas naval facilities, allowing the reach of the Chinese Navy to be a global presence.

Bibliography

Blue-water ambitions: Is China looking beyond its neighborhood now it has the world's largest navy? (2023, Sept. 2). CNN. Retrieved Oct. 7, 2023, from https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/01/asia/china-navy-overseas-military-bases-intl-hnk-ml/index.html

Chang, Andrei. "Analysis: China's global navy--Part 1." UPI Security Industry. February 26, 2009. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tsh&AN=4U7U1800280248&site=ehost-live

Erickson, Andrew S. "The Impact of Chinese Naval Modernization and the Future of the United States Navy." Naval War College Review. 61:1 (Winter 2008) 2p. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tsh&AN=31238360&site=ehost-live

O'Rourke, Ronald. "China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities--Background and Issues for Congress: RL33153." Congressional Research Service. December 23, 2009. 41p. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tsh&AN=47665942&site=ehost-live

Surface forces: Measuring the Chinese fleet. StrategyPage. (n.d.). http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htsurf/20100121.aspx

Tharoor, Ihaan. "China's Navy Grows, and the World Watches Warily." Time. May 13, 2009.

Source: "Measuring the Chinese Fleet." Strategy Page. January 21, 2010. http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htsurf/20100121.aspx