Editing People's Liberation Army Navy (section)

==History==
{{See also|Naval history of China}}
[[File:Heroic Gunboat in the Toumenshan Naval Battle 20170919.jpg|thumb|right|A gunboat in used in the [[Battle of Yijiangshan Islands|Battle of Toumenshan]]]]
The PLAN traces its lineage to units of the [[Republic of China Navy]] (ROCN) who defected to the [[People's Liberation Army]] towards the end of the [[Chinese Civil War]]. A number of Japanese and [[Manchukuo Imperial Navy]] gunboats used to patrol the river border with the Soviet Union were also handed over to the PLA following the [[surrender of Japan]]. In 1949, [[Mao Zedong]] asserted that "to oppose imperialist aggression, we must build a powerful navy". During the [[Landing Operation on Hainan Island]], the communists used wooden [[Junk (ship)|junks]] fitted with [[mountain guns]] as both transport and warships against the ROCN. The navy was established on 23 April 1949 by consolidating regional naval forces under [[Joint Staff Department of the Central Military Commission|Joint staff Department]] command in [[Jiangyan]] (now in [[Taizhou, Jiangsu]]).<ref name="中国人民解放军海军成立70周年多国海军活动新闻发布会在青岛举行"/>

[[Dalian Naval Academy|The Naval Academy]] was set up at [[Dalian]] on 22 November 1949, mostly with Soviet instructors. It then consisted of a motley collection of ships and boats acquired from the [[Kuomintang]] forces. The [[People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force|Naval Air Force]] was added two years later. By 1954, an estimated 2,500 Soviet naval advisers were in China—possibly one adviser to every thirty Chinese naval personnel—and the [[Soviet Union]] began providing modern ships.

With Soviet assistance, the navy reorganized in 1954 and 1955 into the [[North Sea Fleet]], [[East Sea Fleet]], and [[South Sea Fleet]], and a corps of [[admirals]] and other naval officers was established from the ranks of the ground forces. In [[shipbuilding]] the Soviets first assisted the Chinese, then the Chinese copied Soviet designs without assistance, and finally the Chinese produced vessels of their own design. Eventually Soviet assistance progressed to the point that a joint Sino-Soviet Pacific Ocean fleet was under discussion.

===1950s and 1960s===
{{unreferenced section|date=November 2023}}
Through the upheavals of the late 1950s and 1960s the Navy remained relatively undisturbed. Under the leadership of Minister of National Defense [[Lin Biao]], large investments were made in naval construction during the frugal years immediately after the [[Great Leap Forward]]. During the [[Cultural Revolution]], a number of top naval commissars and commanders were purged.

Naval forces were used to suppress a revolt in [[Wuhan]] in July 1967, but the service largely avoided the turmoil affecting the country. Although it paid lip service to Mao and assigned political commissars aboard ships, the Navy continued to train, build, and maintain the fleets as well the coastal defense and aviation arms, as well as in the performance of its mission.

===1970s and 1980s===
In the 1970s, when approximately 20 percent of the defense budget was allocated to naval forces, the Navy grew dramatically. The conventional submarine force increased from 35 to 100 boats, the number of [[missile]]-carrying ships grew from 20 to 200, and the production of larger [[surface ship]]s, including support ships for oceangoing operations, increased. The Navy also began development of [[SSN (hull classification symbol)|nuclear attack submarines]] (SSN) and nuclear-powered [[ballistic missile submarine]]s (SSBN).{{citation needed|date=July 2024}}

In the 1980s, under the leadership of Chief Naval Commander [[Liu Huaqing]], the navy developed into a regional naval power, though naval construction continued at a level somewhat below the 1970s rate. Liu Huaqing was an Army officer who spent most of his career in administrative positions involving science and technology. It was not until 1988 that the People's Liberation Army Navy was led by a [[naval officer]]. Liu was also very close to [[Deng Xiaoping]] as his modernization efforts were very much in keeping with Deng's national policies.<ref name="ReferenceA">Cole, Bernard D. ''The Great Wall at Sea'' Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 2001</ref>

While under his leadership Naval construction yards produced fewer ships than the 1970s, greater emphasis was placed on technology and qualitative improvement. Modernization efforts also encompassed higher educational and technical standards for personnel; reformulation of the traditional coastal defense doctrine and force structure in favor of more [[green-water]] operations; and training in naval [[combined-arms]] operations involving submarine, surface, [[naval aviation]], and [[Coastal defence and fortification|coastal defense]] forces.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

Examples of the expansion of China's capabilities were the 1980 recovery of an [[intercontinental ballistic missile]] (ICBM) in the [[Western Pacific Ocean|Western Pacific]] by a twenty-ship fleet, extended naval operations in the [[South China Sea]] in 1984 and 1985, and the visit of two naval ships to three South Asian nations in 1985. In 1982 the navy conducted a successful test of an underwater-launched [[ballistic missile]]. The navy also had some success in developing a variety of [[surface-to-surface missile|surface-to-surface]] and [[air-to-surface missile]]s, improving basic capabilities.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

In 1986, the Navy's [[order of battle]] included two [[Type 092 submarine|''Xia''-class]] [[SSBN]]s armed with twelve [[CSS-N-3]] missiles and three [[Type 091 submarine|Han-class]] SSNs armed with six [[SY-2]] [[cruise missile]]s. In the late 1980s, major deficiencies reportedly remained in [[anti-submarine warfare]], [[Naval mine|mine warfare]], naval electronics (including [[electronic countermeasures]] equipment), and [[naval aviation]] capabilities.{{citation needed|date=July 2024}}

The PLA Navy was ranked in 1987 as the third largest navy in the world, although naval personnel had comprised only 12 percent of PLA strength. In 1987 the Navy consisted (as it does now) of the naval headquarters in Beijing; three fleet commands – the [[North Sea Fleet]], based at [[Qingdao]], Shandong; the [[East Sea Fleet]], based at [[Ningbo]]; and the [[South Sea Fleet]], based at [[Zhanjiang]], Guangdong – and about 1,000 ships of which only approximately 350 are ocean going.  The rest are small patrol or support craft.{{citation needed|date=July 2024}}

The 350,000-person Navy included Naval Air Force units of 34,000 men, the Coastal Defense Forces of 38,000, and the Marine Corps of 56,500. Navy Headquarters, which controlled the three fleet commands, was subordinate to the PLA General Staff Department. In 1987, China's 1,500&nbsp;km [[coastline]] was protected by approximately 70{{citation needed|date=July 2024}} diesel-powered [[Romeo-class submarine|Romeo]]- and [[Whiskey-class submarine|Whiskey]]-class submarines, which could remain at sea only a limited time.

Inside this protective ring and within range of shore-based aircraft were [[destroyers]] and [[frigates]] mounting [[P-15 Termit|Styx]] anti-ship missiles, [[depth-charge projector]]s, and guns up to 130&nbsp;mm. Any invader penetrating the destroyer and frigate protection would have been swarmed by almost 900 [[fast-attack craft]]. Stormy weather limited the range of these small boats, however, and curtailed [[air support]]. Behind the inner ring were Coastal Defense Force personnel operating naval shore [[Artillery battery|batteries]] of Styx missiles and guns, backed by ground force units deployed in depth.{{citation needed|date=July 2024}}

===1990s and 2000s===
As the 21st century approached, the PLAN began to transition to an [[Green-water navy|off-shore defensive strategy]] that entailed more [[Blue-water navy|out-of-area operations]] away from its traditional territorial waters.<ref name="navy2007">{{cite book |title = China's Navy 2007|author = Office of Naval Intelligence |year= 2008 |publisher=U.S. Navy |location= Washington, DC |oclc = 85895158 |pages = 23–30 |url = https://fas.org/irp/agency/oni/chinanavy2007.pdf |access-date=25 February 2010|author-link = Office of Naval Intelligence }}</ref>{{rp|23–30}}  From 1990 to 2002, [[Jiang Zemin]]'s military reforms placed particular emphasis on the Navy.<ref name=":Li">{{Cite book |last=Li |first=Xiaobing |title=China under Xi Jinping: A New Assessment |publisher=[[Leiden University Press]] |year=2024 |isbn=9789087284411 |editor-last=Fang |editor-first=Qiang |chapter=Beijing's Military Power and East Asian-Pacific Hot Spots |editor-last2=Li |editor-first2=Xiaobing}}</ref>{{Rp|page=261}}

Between 1989 and 1993, the training ship ''Zhenghe'' paid ports visits to Hawaii, Thailand, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and India.  PLAN vessels visited Vladivostok in 1993, 1994, 1995, and 1996.  PLAN task groups also paid visits to Indonesia in 1995; North Korea in 1997; New Zealand, Australia, and the Philippines in 1998; Malaysia, Tanzania, South Africa, the United States, and Canada in 2000; and India, Pakistan, France, Italy, Germany, Britain, Hong Kong, Australia, and New Zealand in 2001.<ref name="navy2007" />{{rp|114}}

In March 1997, the [[Type 052 destroyer|''Luhu''-class guided missile destroyer]] ''Harbin'', the [[Type 051 destroyer|''Luda''-class guided missile destroyer]] ''[[Zhuhai]]'', and the [[Fusu class replenishment ship|replenishment oiler]] ''Nancang'' began the PLA Navy's first circumnavigation of the Pacific Ocean, a 98-day voyage with port visits to Mexico, Peru, Chile, and the United States, including [[Pearl Harbor Naval Base|Pearl Harbor]] and [[Naval Base San Diego|San Diego]].  The flotilla was under the command of [[Jiang (rank)|Vice Admiral]] Wang Yongguo, the commander-in-chief of the South Sea Fleet.<ref name="navy2007"/>{{rp|114}}<ref>{{cite web | last= Dengfeng | first= Wu | title= Deep Blue Defense – A Modern Force at Sea| url= http://www.chinapictorial.com.cn/en/focus/txt/2009-04/07/content_190344.htm | year= 2009 | work=Focus | publisher=China Pictorial | access-date=25 February 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title= China's Maritime Territorial Claims: Implications for U.S. Interests |last1= Dumbaugh |first1= Kerry |author2=Richard Cronin |author3=Shirley Kan |author4=Larry Niksch |author5=David M. Ackerman |date= 2 February 2009 | orig-year = 12 November 2001 |publisher=[[Congressional Research Service|Congressional Research Service (CRS)]] |location= Washington, DC |pages= CRS–32 |url= http://web.mit.edu/kolya/.f/root/net.mit.edu/sipb.mit.edu/contrib/wikileaks-crs/wikileaks-crs-reports/RL31183.pdf |oclc=48670022 |access-date=2 March 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title= Naval strategy in Northeast Asia: geo-strategic goals, policies, and prospects |last= Kim |first= Duk-ki |year= 2000 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |location= New York City |isbn= 0-7146-4966-X |page= 152 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=9ReJ6RvoeREC&q=Zhuhai%20Nancang%201997&pg=PA152 |access-date=2 March 2010 }}</ref>

The [[Type 052 destroyer|''Luhu''-class guided missile destroyer]] ''Qingdao'' and the [[replenishment oiler]] ''Taicang'' completed the PLA Navy's first circumnavigation of the world ''(pictured)'', a 123-day voyage covering {{convert|32000|nmi|km mi}} between 15 May – 23 September 2002.  Port visits included Changi, Singapore; [[Alexandria, Egypt]]; [[Aksis]], Turkey; [[Sevastopol, Ukraine|Sevastopol]], Ukraine; [[Piraeus, Greece|Piraeus]], Greece; [[Lisbon]], Portugal; [[Fortaleza, Brazil|Fortaleza]], Brazil; [[Guayaquil, Ecuador|Guayaquil]], Ecuador; [[Callao, Peru|Callao]], Peru; and [[Papeete]] in [[French Polynesia]].  The PLA naval vessels participated in naval exercises with the [[French Navy|French]] frigates {{ship|French frigate|Nivôse||2}} and {{ship|French frigate|Prairial||2}}, as well as exercises with the [[Peruvian Navy]].  The flotilla was under the command of Vice Admiral Ding Yiping, the commander-in-chief of the North Sea Fleet, and [[Xiao (rank)|Captain]] Li Yujie was the commanding officer of the ''Qingdao''.<ref name="navy2007" />{{rp|114–115}}<ref>{{cite book |title= Japan's sea lane security, 1940–2004: a matter of life and death? |last= Graham |first= Euan |year= 2005 |publisher=Institute/Routledge Japanese Studies |location= New York |isbn= 0-415-35640-7 |page= 208 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=2002: Chinese naval ships made first round -the-world sailing |url=http://english.pladaily.com.cn/site2/special-reports/2008-11/27/content_1608384.htm |work=Yearly Focus |publisher=PLA Daily |date=8 October 2008 |access-date=2 March 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726143605/http://english.pladaily.com.cn/site2/special-reports/2008-11/27/content_1608384.htm |archive-date=26 July 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title= Chinese Naval Fleet Concludes Visit to Turkey | url= http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200206/23/eng20020623_98395.shtml | work=World News | publisher=[[People's Daily Online]] | date= 24 June 2002 | access-date=2 March 2009}}</ref>

Overall, between 1985 and 2006, PLAN naval vessels visited 18 Asian-Pacific nations, 4 South American nations, 8 European nations, 3 African nations, and 3 North American nations.<ref name="navy2007" />{{rp|115}}  In 2003, the PLAN conducted its first joint naval exercises during separate visits to Pakistan and India. Bi-lateral naval exercises were also carried out with exercises with the French, British, Australian, Canadian, Philippine, and United States navies.<ref name="navy2007" />{{rp|116}}

On 26 December 2008, the PLAN dispatched a task group consisting of the [[Type 052C destroyer|guided missile destroyer ''Haikou'']] (flagship), the [[Type 052B destroyer|guided missile destroyer ''Wuhan'']], and the supply ship [[Qiandaohu class replenishment ship|''Weishanhu'']] to the [[Gulf of Aden]] to participate in [[Piracy in Somalia|anti-piracy operations]] off the coast of Somalia.  A team of 16 [[People's Liberation Army Special Operations Forces|Chinese Special Forces]] members from its Marine Corps armed with attack helicopters were on board.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.shanghaidaily.com/sp/article/2008/200812/20081223/article_385590.htm |title=China to add special forces, helicopters to fight pirates |newspaper=Shanghai Daily |date=23 December 2008 |access-date=27 March 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090427130007/http://www.shanghaidaily.com/sp/article/2008/200812/20081223/article_385590.htm |archive-date=27 April 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.defencetalk.com/news/publish/navy/China_ready_to_use_force_on_Somali_pirates120016822.php |title=China ready to use force on Somali pirates |publisher=Defencetalk.com |date=23 December 2008 |access-date=27 March 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090226034054/http://defencetalk.com/news/publish/navy/China_ready_to_use_force_on_Somali_pirates120016822.php |archive-date=26 February 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1= Erikson |first1= Andrew R.  | first2= Justine D. | last2=Mikolay|date=March 2009 |title= Welcome China to the Fight Against Pirates |journal=[[U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings]] |volume= 135 |issue= 3 |pages= 34–41 |issn= 0041-798X |url= http://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/story.asp?STORY_ID=1809 |access-date=20 April 2009 |quote= Access requires registration. }}</ref> Since then, China has maintained a three-ship [[flotilla]] of two warships and one supply ship in the [[Gulf of Aden]] by assigning ships to the [[Gulf of Aden]] on a three monthly basis. Other recent PLAN incidents include the 2001 [[Hainan Island incident]], a [[Chinese submarine 361|major submarine accident]] in 2003, and naval incidents involving the U.S. [[Military Sealift Command|MSC-operated]] ocean surveillance ships {{USNS|Victorious|T-AGOS-19|2}} and {{USNS|Impeccable|T-AGOS-23|2}} during 2009. At the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the PLAN, 52 to 56 vessels were shown in manoeuvres off Qingdao in April 2009 including previously unseen nuclear submarines.<ref name=FT/><ref>{{cite news|last=Niu|first=Guang|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-163269450.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150904012849/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-163269450.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=4 September 2015|title=The Chinese Navy missile destroyer 116 Shijiazhuang (3rd L),...|agency=Agence France-Presse|date=23 April 2009|access-date=12 June 2015|url-access=}}</ref>

The demonstration was seen as a sign of the growing status of China, while the [[Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China)|CMC chairman]], [[Hu Jintao]], indicated that China is neither seeking regional hegemony nor entering an arms race.<ref name=FT>{{cite news|last=Hille|first=Kathrin|url=http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/261df28e-3067-11de-88e3-00144feabdc0.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/261df28e-3067-11de-88e3-00144feabdc0.html |archive-date=10 December 2022 |url-access=subscription| title=China's show of sea power challenges US| newspaper=[[Financial Times]] |date=24 April 2009|access-date=12 June 2015}}</ref>
Predictions by Western analysts that the PLAN would outnumber the USN submarine force as early as 2011 have failed to come true because the PRC curtailed both imports and domestic production of submarines.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://medium.com/war-is-boring/fe95f67327fa|title=China's Overhyped Sub Threat|first=David|last=Axe|work=Medium|access-date=25 December 2014}}</ref>

===2010s and 2020s===
[[File:Chinese visit 151103-N-PP197-213.jpg|thumb|PLAN Captain Wang, commanding officer of the [[Chinese destroyer Jinan (152)|destroyer ''Jinan'']] greets USN Captain Lyle Hall during a goodwill port visit in 2015]]
[[File:PLANS Changchun (150), Penang Strait, Penang.jpg|thumb|A [[Type 052C destroyer]], ''[[Chinese destroyer Changchun (150)|Changchun]]'', in [[Butterworth, Penang|Butterworth]], Penang, Malaysia in 2017<ref>{{Cite web |url = http://www.thestar.com.my/metro/community/2017/05/13/chinese-warships-visit-penang-700-crew-members-to-take-part-in-activities-over-three-days/ |title = Chinese warships visit Penang – Community {{!}} The Star Online |website=www.thestar.com.my |access-date=16 May 2017 |date = 13 May 2017 }}</ref>]]
Beginning in 2009, China ordered 4 [[Zubr-class LCAC]] from Ukraine and bought 4 more from the Hellenic Navy (Greece). These hovercraft/LCACs are built to send troops and armored vehicles (tanks, etc.) onto beaches in a fast manner, acting as a landing craft, and were viewed to be a direct threat to Taiwan's pro-independence movement as well as the conflict over [[Senkaku Islands]]. China is continually shifting the power balance in Asia by building up the Navy's Submarines, Amphibious warfare, and surface warfare capabilities.{{citation needed|date=July 2024}}

Between 5–12 July 2013, a seven-ship task force from the [[North Sea Fleet]] joined warships from the [[Russian Pacific Fleet]] to participate in [[Joint Sea 2013]], bilateral naval maneuvers held in the [[Peter the Great Bay]] of the [[Sea of Japan]]. To date, Joint Sea 2013 was the largest naval drill yet undertaken by the People's Liberation Army Navy with a foreign navy.<ref>{{cite web |last=Chan |first=Minnie |date=3 July 2013 |title=China to join Russia in joint naval drills in Sea of Japan |url=http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1274241/china-join-russia-joint-naval-drills-sea-japan |access-date=2 July 2013 |work=[[South China Morning Post]]}}; and {{cite news |date=2 July 2013 |title=China to join Russia in Beijing's largest-ever joint naval exercise with foreign partner |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |agency=Associated Press |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/china-to-join-russia-in-beijings-largest-ever-joint-naval-exercise-with-foreign-partner/2013/07/02/a1bbd30a-e2e4-11e2-8657-fdff0c195a79_story.html |url-status=dead |access-date=2 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190111200104/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/china-to-join-russia-in-beijings-largest-ever-joint-naval-exercise-with-foreign-partner/2013/07/02/a1bbd30a-e2e4-11e2-8657-fdff0c195a79_story.html |archive-date=11 January 2019}}</ref>

On 2 April 2015, during the [[aftermath of the 2014–15 Yemeni coup d'état|violent aftermath]] of a [[2014–15 Yemeni coup d'état|coup d'état]] in Yemen and amid an [[2015 military intervention in Yemen|international bombing campaign]], the PLAN helped ten countries get their citizens out of Yemen safely, evacuating them aboard a missile frigate from the [[Southern Yemen offensive (2015)|besieged]] port city of [[Aden]]. The operation was described by [[Reuters]] as "the first time that China's military has helped other countries evacuate their people during an international crisis".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/china-led-evacuation-from-war-torn-yemen-said-to-include-canadians-1.3020527|agency=CBC News|title=China-led evacuation from war-torn Yemen said to include Canadians|date=3 April 2015|access-date=3 April 2015}}</ref>

China's participation in international maritime exercises is also increasing. In [[Exercise RIMPAC#RIMPAC 2014|RIMPAC 2014]], China was invited to send ships from their People's Liberation Army Navy; marking not only the first time China participated in a RIMPAC exercise but also the first time China participated in a large-scale United States-led naval drill.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-china-drill-idUSBRE92L18A20130322|title=China to attend major U.S.-hosted naval exercises, but role limited|first=Phil|last=Stewart|newspaper=Reuters|date=22 March 2013}}</ref> On 9 June 2014, China confirmed it would be sending four ships to the exercise, a destroyer, frigate, supply ship, & hospital ship.<ref>{{cite news|title=China confirms attendance at U.S.-hosted naval exercises in June|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-usa-defence-idUSKBN0EK07820140609|access-date=10 June 2014|work=Reuters|date=9 June 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Tiezzi|first1=Shannon|title=A 'Historic Moment': China's Ships Head to RIMPAC 2014|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/06/a-historic-moment-chinas-ships-head-to-rimpac-2014/|access-date=10 June 2014|work=The Diplomat |url-access=subscription |date=11 June 2014}}</ref> In April 2016, the People's Republic of China was also invited to RIMPAC 2016 despite the tension in South China Sea.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.usni.org/2016/04/18/secdef-carter-china-still-invited-to-rimpac-2016-despite-south-china-sea-tension|title=SECDEF Carter: China Still Invited to RIMPAC 2016 Despite South China Sea Tension |website=USNI News|date=18 April 2016 |first1=Megan |last1=Eckstein |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231004135059/https://news.usni.org/2016/04/18/secdef-carter-china-still-invited-to-rimpac-2016-despite-south-china-sea-tension |archive-date= Oct 4, 2023 }}</ref>

PRC military expert [[Yin Zhuo]] said that due to present weaknesses in the PLAN's ability to replenish their ships at sea, their future aircraft carriers will be forced to operate in pairs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.people.com.cn/90786/8397264.html|title=Expert: One Chinese aircraft carrier insufficient to cope with high-intensity combat – People's Daily Online|author=F_161|access-date=25 December 2014}}</ref>
In a TV interview, [[Zhang Zhaozhong (military official)|Zhang Zhaozhong]] suggest otherwise, saying China is "unlikely to put all her eggs in one basket" and that the navy will likely rotate between carriers rather than deploy them all at once.

In 2017, PLAN hospital ship ''[[Peace Ark]]'' traveled to Djibouti (treating 7,841 Djiboutians), Sierra Leone, Gabon, Republic of Congo (treating 7,508 Congolese), Angola, Mozambique (treating 9,881 Mozambiquans), and Tanzania (treating 6,421 Tanzanians).''<ref name=":32">{{Cite book |last1=Shinn |first1=David H. |title=China's Relations with Africa: a New Era of Strategic Engagement |last2=Eisenman |first2=Joshua |date=2023 |publisher=[[Columbia University Press]] |isbn=978-0-231-21001-0 |location=New York |author-link=David H. Shinn}}</ref>{{Rp|page=284}}''

The PLAN continued its expansion into the 2020s, increasing its operational capacity, commissioning new ships, and constructing naval facilities.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Sutton|first=H. I.|date=17 December 2020|title=Beijing Upgrading Naval Bases To Strengthen Grip On South China Sea|url=https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2020/12/beijing-upgrading-naval-bases-to-strengthen-grip-on-south-china-sea/|access-date=20 December 2020|website=Naval News|language=en-US}}</ref> Observers note that the PLAN's ongoing modernization is intended to build up the Chinese surface fleet and fix existing issues that limit the capability of the PLAN. Observers have noted that the PLAN's expansion will allow it to project Chinese power in the South China Sea and allow for the navy to counter the USN's operations in Asia.<ref>{{Cite journal|title=China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities—Background and Issues for Congress|url=https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/RL/RL33153|journal=Congressional Research Service|pages=2}}</ref> Chinese naval capability increased substantially in the 2010s and 2020s. In two decades, the PLA Navy fielded 4,300 [[vertical launching system]] (VLS) cells on its surface combatants.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.iiss.org/online-analysis/military-balance/2024/12/closing-the-gap-china-homes-in-on-us-navy-vls-advantage/ |title=Closing the gap: China homes in on US Navy VLS advantage |website=The International Institute for Strategic Studies |date=20 December 2024 |first=Johannes |last=R. Fischbach }}</ref> According to the US-based think tank [[RAND Corporation]], PLAN enjoyed major advantages in terms of naval technologies, missiles, and tonnage against regional rivals such as Taiwan, Japan, Vietnam, the Philippines, and India.{{citation needed|date=July 2024}}