Will the Chinese Navy shift from defense to active counterattack?

On the morning of May 26, China announced its National Defense Strategy, which emphasized strengthening naval capabilities beyond the country's coastline.

China said that “some neighboring countries have taken provocative actions and increased military presence on China's reefs and islands” and that “some outside countries have also interfered in South China Sea affairs, maintained maritime and air surveillance, and conducted reconnaissance activities against China.”

Chinese Navy participates in RIMPAC exercise in 2014 (photo: Reuters)

The Chinese navy will shift its focus from “offshore defense” to a combination of “offshore defense” and “open sea protection” to deal with “threats to China’s maritime rights and interests.”

Strengthening naval capabilities is one of the contents of China's Defense White Paper released this morning, May 26. This document was released in the context of escalating tensions in the East Sea after China stepped up illegal reclamation of reefs in the Truong Sa archipelago, despite protests from many countries.

“In addition to strengthening our naval capabilities, we need to closely monitor our airspace and develop our air defense capabilities,” said Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Yang Yujun.

Last week, China took action to chase away US and Philippine aircraft flying over its reclaimed reefs in the South China Sea. Beijing has also been vague about its ambition to establish an Air Defense Identification Zone in the South China Sea, which is home to important international shipping and air routes.

On April 9, the US Office of Naval Intelligence released its first report examining the capabilities of the Chinese navy since 2009, showing its enormous size compared to the naval forces of neighboring countries. The report predicts that in the next decade, Beijing will complete the transition from a coastal defense navy to a multi-mission navy with a worldwide range of operations./.

According to VOV