China showcases military might, sends PLA warships to West Pacific for live-fire drills

The military said on Tuesday, just after one of China’s two aircraft carriers returned from a patrol, that two Chinese warships had entered the Western Pacific for live-fire drills. This was part of China’s latest show of might in more remote areas. The destroyer Dalian and the guided-missile frigate Huangshan recently travelled to an unnamed region of the West Pacific to conduct attack and defensive manoeuvres, according to a statement from China’s People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Southern Theatre Command. “The joint training in unfamiliar and complex waters is of great significance in exploring the boundaries of new equipment effectiveness, testing the practical application of new warfare method,” the command said, citing a training officer. Soon after a carrier group led by the Shandong, one of China’s two operational aircraft carriers, returned to its home port this month after sailing past Taiwan and into the Western Pacific, exercises in the more remote parts of the West Pacific were conducted. The United States and its allies are concerned about China’s military modernization and its formidable missile forces and naval fleet, which now includes new ships like cutting-edge cruisers. “China’s aircraft carrier is not a homebody and cannot just stay at home,” Song Zhongping, a military commentator with Hong Kong’s Phoenix TV, told Reuters, referring to the Shandong. “There will be more and more of these distant sea travels in future. Also China has quite a lot of warships.” After a 30-day journey through the South China Sea and the Western Pacific, the Hainan, China’s first domestically constructed amphibious assault ship, along with a destroyer, a frigate, and a supply ship, finished their maiden remote sea training in March, according to the Southern Theatre Command. Defence analysts estimate that despite China’s military buildup, it may still be more than ten years before China can deploy a credible carrier threat outside of its borders. (With agency inputs) Read all the Latest News, Trending News,  Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.