The Chinese navy completed the first ever around-the-world naval voyage by Chinese warships this week. The last comparable milestone in the annals of the Chinese navy was when the renowned Ming dynasty admiral Zheng He (
The Qingdao, a Luhu-class guided-missile destroyer, and the Taichang, a supply ship, returned to their North Sea Fleet headquarters at Qingdao in September after a voyage that began in mid-May. Significantly, this longest ever voyage by the Chinese navy coincides with the closure of the Russian base at Cam Ranh Bay, the last permanent European naval presence on the Asian
continent.
The Chinese ships passed through the Indian, Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, with port calls in the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. They showed their flag in Singapore, Egypt, Turkey, the Ukraine, Greece, Portugal, Brazil, Ecuador and Peru.
Aboard the Qingdao, North Sea Fleet Commander Rear Admiral Ding Yiping (丁一平) declared that he was testing the navy's oceangoing operational capabilities, promoting peace and friendship and learning from foreign navies. But the voyage is also a symbol of China's global naval aspirations and its achievements in modern shipbuilding.
Recent commentaries in leading People's Liberation Army journals have alluded to an emerging strategic doctrine of Chinese sea power for the 21st century.
The articles stress the importance of China having a powerful navy by the mid-21st century, one that can secure China's maritime environment and its sea lines of communication. They signal China's ambition to realize its dream of acquiring a navy that matches China's status as a global trading state. A strong navy will ensure that it is never again invaded from the sea. It will also prevent Taiwan's independence and safeguard China's claims to other islands and ocean territory in the East and South China Seas.
Not surprisingly, China is leading the field in the Asia-Pacific region with a sustained program of long-distance naval voyaging, training and testing. There have been 15 similar "show the flag" Chinese naval expeditions since 1985 -- to the US, South America, various ports in Southeast Asia and South Asia, the Russian Far East, South Korea, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and the South Pacific.
In March 1997, the Chinese navy sent three warships to US Pacific Fleet Headquarters in Pearl Harbor. In May 1998, three ships arrived in Sydney for the first ever visit to Australia by PRC warships. In October, Chinese ships circumnavigated Japan. Such operations demonstrate the steadily growing confidence and proficiency of the Chinese navy.
At the same time, China is buying the best air and sea- launched anti-ship missile systems that Russia is willing to sell. Weapons like the Kh-31 Krypton air-launched anti-ship missile and several Sovremenny-class guided- missile destroyers are being bought specifically to deal with contingencies in the Taiwan Strait. This includes deterring intervention by US aircraft carriers or, for that matter, by ships from the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force.
China's largest warships, the Fuzhou and Hangzhou, both Sovremenny-class guided-missile destroyers, have been test-firing their SS-N-22 Sunburn carrier-busting anti-ship missiles (range 120km). In March this year, Chinese navy ordered two more Sovremennys, to be delivered by 2005. They will be equipped with the SS-N-26 Yakhont supersonic anti-ship missile (range 300km).
As well as surface comba-tants, China has been buying Russian submarines with the same strategic objective in mind. In May this year, Russia's Rosoboronexport Company announced a contract to supply China with another eight Project 636 Kilo-class conventional submarines, with delivery by 2007. Reportedly, they will come with Klub-S long-range (300km) anti-ship missiles. The new Kilos will boost China's growing submarine warfare capabilities and its ability to determine the outcome of events in and around Taiwan and the Western Pacific.
Trends in China's submarine training program point to a blockade of Taiwan, rather than a more overtly aggressive and potentially costly amphibious assault across the Taiwan Strait. China's submarines are concentrating on concealment and ambush procedures, formation attacks, long-range deployments, mine-laying and torpedo strikes against surface shipping.
China also needs to find a way to neutralize military facilities on Taiwan's east coast, such as the Chiashan airbase, which is sheltered by the Central Mountain range. The PLA has been trying to develop more accurate cruise missiles and maneuverable ballistic missiles.
Another option being considered is the development of an aircraft carrier. In 1998, China bought the incomplete former Soviet aircraft carrier Varyag from the Ukraine. The keel of the Varyag was laid down in 1985 but the ship, 80 percent complete, was left unfinished following the collapse of the Soviet Union. The price paid by China (US$20 million) includes the blueprints, ostensibly to help deconstruct the ship.
However, the Varyag is presently anchored at Dalian, one of China's largest naval shipyards. There is little doubt that the Commander of the Chinese Navy, Vice Admiral Shi Yunsheng (
Frustration over the delay in unification with Taiwan and a mix of apprehension and admiration for US naval power are driving China's quest to become a great naval power. It may take half a century, but that is not a long time for China.
As the Chinese navy progress-es and sends more formidable warships further into the Pacific and other oceans, countries in the region and around the world will need to consider how they are going to accommodate and, in some cases, counter China's naval power.
Gary Klintworth has worked as a China analyst in Australia's Defense Department and the Australian National University. He is currently a consultant for Australia's Center for International Strategic Analysis.
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