Tai Ming Cheung Quoted on Management of China's Combat-Ready Force
China’s fourth fleet
09/09/2011
Robert Karniol,
The Korea Herald
With a low-key remark in the state-run People’s Daily, China effectively signaled its intention to establish a fourth fleet for the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). However, this may yet prove temporary.
The PLAN is currently structured around three fleets, each with a geographic focus: the North Sea Fleet, headquartered in Qingdao; the East Sea Fleet, headquartered in Ningbo; and the South Sea Fleet, headquartered in Zhanjiang. But an Aug. 16 newspaper article suggests that change is brewing on a grander scale than most envisage.
“China’s new aircraft carrier is planning to serve in the South China Sea by the next Army Day (Aug. 1),” the People’s Daily Online reported, referencing an unnamed military source. “The vessel will be under direct command of the country’s Central Military Commission (CMC).”
Click here to read the full article.
Related Links
Tai Ming Cheung is an associate research scientist at the University of California Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation (IGCC) located at the University of California, San Diego in La Jolla. He directs the Minerva program on Chinese security and technology, a multi-year academic research and training project funded by the U.S. Defense Department to explore China’s technological potential.
