The South China Sea dispute has already escalated to its peak given China’s deployment of its military might in the controversial waters. China’s expansion of naval power in the South China Sea region has raised concerns among other regional powers including India and Japan. Amid all this tension, China first home-built aircraft carrier began advanced sea trials.
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China wants its “Type 001A Aircraft Carrier” to be combat ready to the earliest. Beginning from Friday, an area of 1300 square kilometres near the shipyard where the 001A aircraft carrier was built has been denied to other vessels for 8 days.
This large chunk of the area in the Yellow Sea is specially designated to this particular vessel is evident of the fact that China wants to waste no time in making this vessel ready for combat situations. The Liaoning Maritime Safety Administration did not reveal any further details as reported by SCMP.
In a statement issued by the Chinese defence ministry on Thursday, the officials stated that the vessel recently departed from the Dalian shipping yard and was proceeding for offshore trials.
China has assumed a pretty aggressive stance on the South China Sea which worries other claimants of the region and also those who stand for free trade through the waters of the region. China has been constructing artificial islands in the region and is loading them with the surface to air missiles. India, Japan, Australia, the US and the ASEAN nations share common concerns over China’s radiating military presence in the region.
This vessel will add another feather in China’s naval might and it is likely to sail the South China Sea soon as a narrative of China’s influence in the region. China has invested a lot in the South China Sea Region and China would not let its interests be compromised even at the cost of a befitting war.
