Editing Cruiser (section)

===Current cruisers===
[[File:PLANS Nanchang (DDG-101) 20210319.jpg|thumb|China's latest [[Type 055 destroyer]] has been classified by the United States Department of Defense as a cruiser because of its large size and armament.]]
The end of the [[Cold War]] and the subsequent reduction of military rivalry led to significant reductions in naval forces. This reduction was more pronounced in the Soviet Navy, which was mostly taken over by Russia. Faced with severe financial difficulties, Russia was forced to decommission most of its ships in the 1990s or send them for extended overhauls. The most recent Soviet/Russian rocket cruisers, the four {{sclass|Kirov|battlecruiser|2}}<nowiki/>s, were built in the 1970s and 1980s. One of the ''Kirov'' class is in refit, and 2 are being scrapped, with the {{ship|Russian battlecruiser|Pyotr Velikiy||2}} in active service. Russia also operates two {{sclass|Slava|cruiser|2}}<nowiki/>s and one [[Kuznetsov-class aircraft carrier|''Admiral Kuznetsov''-class carrier]] which is officially designated as a cruiser, specifically a "[[Aircraft cruiser|heavy aviation cruiser]]" ({{langx|ru|тяжелый авианесущий крейсер}}) due to her complement of 12 [[P-700 Granit]] supersonic AShMs. In 2022, the cruiser ''[[Russian cruiser Moskva|Moskva]]'' of Project 1164 sank after being hit by a Ukrainian missile.<ref name=":28" />

Currently, the ''Kirov''-class heavy missile cruisers are used for command purposes, as ''Pyotr Velikiy'' is the [[flagship]] of the [[Northern Fleet]]. However, their air defense capabilities are still powerful, as shown by the array of [[point defense]] missiles they carry, from 44 [[9K33 Osa#Variants|OSA-MA]] missiles to 196 [[Tor missile system#3K95 Kinzhal (naval variant)|9K311 Tor]] missiles. For longer range targets, the [[S-300 (missile)|S-300]] is used. For closer range targets, [[AK-630]] or [[Kashtan]] CIWSs are used. Aside from that, ''Kirov''s have 20 [[P-700 Granit]] missiles for anti-ship warfare. For target acquisition beyond the [[radar horizon]], three [[helicopter]]s can be used. Besides a vast array of armament, ''Kirov''-class cruisers are also outfitted with many sensors and communications equipment, allowing them to lead the fleet.{{citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

The United States Navy has centered on the aircraft carrier since World War II. The ''Ticonderoga''-class cruisers, built in the 1980s, were originally designed and designated as a class of destroyer, intended to provide a very powerful air-defense in these carrier-centered fleets.{{citation_needed|date=August 2019}} As of 2020, the US Navy still had 22 of its newest ''Ticonderoga''-class cruisers in service.<ref name=":10" /> These ships were continuously upgraded, enhancing their value and versatility. Some were equipped with [[United States national missile defense|ballistic missile defense]] capabilities ([[Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System|Aegis BMD]] system).<ref name=":10" /> However, no new cruisers of this class were being built. In the 21st century, there were design efforts for futuristic large cruisers provisionally designated as [[CG(X)]], but the program was canceled in 2010 due to budget constraints.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Larter |first=David |date=2020-06-26 |title=Congress aims to strip funding for the US Navy's next-gen large surface combatant |url=https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2020/06/25/congress-aims-to-strip-funding-for-the-us-navys-next-generation-large-surface-combatant/ |access-date=2024-05-21 |website=Defense News |language=en}}</ref>

Formally, only the aforementioned ships are classified as cruisers globally. The latest American futuristic large destroyers of the ''[[Zumwalt-class destroyer|Zumwalt]]'' class, despite their displacement of approximately 16,000 tons and armament with two large-caliber (155&nbsp;mm) guns traditionally associated with cruisers, are classified as destroyers.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Lipiecki |first=Sławomir |year=2016 |title=Niszczyciele typu Zumwalt. Okręty ery kosmicznej. Część 1 |journal=Morze, Statki i Okręty |language=pl |volume=XXI |issue=176 |pages=18–19}}</ref> Literature often emphasizes that these ships are essentially large cruisers.<ref>Lipiecki, pp. 38–39</ref> Similarly, Japanese large missile destroyers of the ''[[Kongō-class destroyer|Kongō]]'' class, with a displacement of 9,485 tons and equipped with the Aegis system (derived from the ''Arleigh Burke''-class destroyers), are sometimes referred to as cruisers.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Schiele |first=Marcin |year=2000 |title=Japońskie fregaty rakietowe typu Murasame |journal=Morza, Statki i Okręty |language=pl |location=Warsaw |publisher=Magnum X |volume=V |issue=20 |page=12}}</ref> Their improved versions, the ''Atago'' and ''Maya'' classes, exceed 10,000 tons.<ref name=":27" /> Japan, for political reasons, does not use the term "cruiser" or even "destroyer", formally classifying these ships as missile escorts with hull numbers prefixed by DDG, corresponding to guided-missile destroyers.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Wieliczko |first=Leszek |year=2017 |title=Flota Wschodzącego Słońca |journal=Morze, Statki i Okręty |language=pl |volume=XXI |issue=181 |page=37 |issn=1426-529X}}</ref> These Japanese destroyers also provide ballistic missile defense.<ref>Lipiecki, p. 34</ref>

Outside the US and Soviet navies, new cruisers were rare following World War II. Most navies use guided-missile destroyers for fleet air defense, and destroyers and frigates for cruise missiles. The need to operate in task forces has led most navies to change to fleets designed around ships dedicated to a single role, anti-submarine or anti-aircraft typically, and the large "generalist" ship has disappeared from most forces. The [[United States Navy]] and the [[Russian Navy]] are the only remaining navies which operate active duty ships formally classed as cruisers. Italy used {{ship|Italian cruiser|Vittorio Veneto|550|2}} until 2003 (decommissioned in 2006) and the aircraft cruiser {{ship|Italian aircraft carrier|Giuseppe Garibaldi|551|2}} until 2024; France operated a single helicopter cruiser until May 2010, {{ship|French cruiser|Jeanne d'Arc|R97|2}}, for training purposes only. While Type 055 of the Chinese Navy is classified as a cruiser by the U.S. Department of Defense, the Chinese consider it a guided-missile destroyer.<ref>{{Cite web|title=2017 China Military Power Report|url=https://www.defense.gov/Portals/1/Documents/pubs/2017_China_Military_Power_Report.PDF|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170828190843/https://www.defense.gov/Portals/1/Documents/pubs/2017_China_Military_Power_Report.PDF|url-status=dead|archive-date=August 28, 2017|website=dod.defense.gov}}</ref>
[[File:Bow view of USS Spruance (DD-963) and USS Ticonderoga (CG-47) at Naval Station Norfolk on 8 October 1983 (6397938).jpg|thumb|[[Ticonderoga-class cruiser|''Ticonderoga''-class]] cruiser's design was based on that of [[Spruance-class destroyer|''Spruance''-class]] [[destroyer]].]]
In the years since the launch of {{USS|Ticonderoga|CG-47|2}} in 1981, the class has received a number of upgrades that have dramatically improved its members' capabilities for anti-submarine and land attack (using the Tomahawk missile). Like their Soviet counterparts, the modern ''Ticonderoga''s can also be used as the basis for an entire battle group. Their cruiser designation was almost certainly deserved when first built, as their sensors and combat management systems enable them to act as flagships for a surface warship flotilla if no carrier is present, but newer ships rated as destroyers and also equipped with Aegis approach them very closely in capability, and once more blur the line between the two classes.{{citation_needed|date=August 2019}}