Beijing has finished building a second ship (CCG-3901) – the world’s largest – for the China Coast Guard (CCG).
These “monster ships” manifest China’s maritime territorial claims through their size alone: they are bigger even than US guided missile destroyers of the Arleigh-Burke class (such as the USS Lassen).
The new ship is intended to assert China’s maritime claims in the South China Sea.
China’s naval modernization means that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) can potentially enforce the territorial claims and deter other countries from resisting.
[ SWP – July 8, 2016 ]
