Navy Shipbuilding Plan Would Reduce Fleet Size During Time That China Might Invade Taiwan
Micaela Burrow on October 27, 2023
The Navy’s proposed shipbuilding plans would reduce the fleet temporarily during the years in which U.S. officials say Chinese President Xi Jinping might move on Taiwan, according to an analysis by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
Three different paths outlined in the Navy’s mandated fiscal year 2024 shipbuilding plan seeks to expand the Naval fleet beyond its current 290 battle force vessels, but to do so it has to retire nine ships before new ones can be commissioned, CBO wrote. The schedule for decommissioning ships is still the same under all three alternatives, bringing the fleet to a low of 285 ships by 2027, while China would be growing its fleet.
U.S. defense officials stress that China’s timeline is not set in stone. However, Xi has pledged to develop a combat-ready military by 2027, and while Xi did not promise to invade Taiwan by a specific date, he has made clear his intent to seize the semi-autonomous island by force if necessary.
“We know as a matter of intelligence he has instructed the People’s Liberation Army to be ready by 2027 to conduct a successful invasion,” CIA Director William Burns said in February.
https://www.shorenewsnetwork.com/2023/10/28/navy-shipbuilding-plan-would-reduce-fleet-size-during-time-that-china-might-invade-taiwan/
