https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/real-reason-china-building-fleet-aircraft-carriers-213185
China has developed a comprehensive anti-access and area denial (A2/AD) network aimed at neutralizing the power projection capabilities of the U.S. Navy, particularly its aircraft carriers, in the Indo-Pacific region. This system is designed to weaken the U.S. ability to intervene in regional conflicts, such as a potential invasion of Taiwan, by keeping U.S. carriers at bay. Despite this, China has been building its own fleet of aircraft carriers, seeking to operate within the protective bubble of its A2/AD systems.
This strategy allows Beijing to project power in the region without risking confrontation with the U.S. Navy, ultimately seeking to dominate the Indo-Pacific region. Even though the A2/AD systems China has deployed have significantly degraded the capabilities of its carriers, Beijing has simultaneously been busy building its own carriers. China now has three aircraft carriers, with more on the way, outnumbering any other regional power in both numbers and carrier capabilities.
Many carrier proponents in the West use this fact to dismiss those who are skeptical of the carrier’s usefulness in a much-deteriorated environment. But what they miss, either through ignorance or hubris, is that China’s investment in its growing carrier force is based on a long-term, multifaceted strategy.
The carriers will not sail into waters beyond the A2/AD defenses China has established in the region. Instead, they will operate in a protective bubble created by the A2/AD systems.
By keeping enemy carriers and other surface warships off the horizon while being able to deploy large numbers of their own, Chinese strategists believe they can dominate the Indo-Pacific. Chinese-led aircraft carriers, once the Chinese military believes it can credibly deter US force projection into the region, could then direct their forces to places like Taiwan.
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