China held this Friday the launching ceremony of its Army’s third aircraft carrier, which will be named “Fujian,” according to state broadcaster CCTV. With this, the Beijing regime is positioned as the second largest owner of these super ships, in number, and thus certifies its global military power.
After the ship received approval from the Central Military Commission of China, the highest ranking military body in the country, the ceremony took place at the Jiangnan shipyard in Shanghai (east).
According to state media, the Fujian is the first aircraft carrier with a catapult launch system designed and built entirely by China.
In December 2019, China launched its second aircraft carrier, the Shandong, in the island province of Hainan (south), the first Chinese-made, since the only one previously owned by the Asian country’s Navy, the Liaoning, is an old Soviet ship that was rehabilitated in 2012.
The aircraft carrier Fujian, named after the southeastern province of Fujian, will undergo mooring and navigation tests after launch, according to CCTV.
It will be capable of displacing 80,000 tons, thus approaching some US aircraft carriers with a displacement capacity of 100,000 tons.
The reinforcement of the Chinese Navy raises suspicions among its rivals -both the US and other countries in the region-, especially due to the territorial conflicts around the South China Sea, whose sovereignty China claims in its entirety.
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