The United States Navy has released documents outlining its goals for meeting the growing threat of Chinese military power in the coming years.
The Navigation Plan for America’s Warfighting Navy, published Thursday, is designed to bring the Navy into a stronger position against the People's Liberation Army (PLA) by 2027 via bolstered recruitment and strategic technological advancement.
"This Navigation Plan drives toward two strategic ends: readiness for the possibility of war with the People’s Republic of China by 2027 and enhancing the Navy’s long-term advantage," the report states.
It continues, "We will work towards these ends through two mutually reinforcing ways: implementing Project 33 and expanding the Navy’s contribution to the Joint warfighting ecosystem."
The 2027 deadline for Navy modernization relates to Chinese President Xi Jinping's stated goal of preparing the PLA for an invasion of Taiwan by 2030.
The Department of Defense noted last year in its document "The Ambitious Dragon" that "if President Xi continues to pursue annexation of Taiwan, the PLA will be prepared by 2027, and he will likely take steps to realize these ambitions by 2030 as China’s population ages, while pursuing unification to solidify his historic legacy in his lifetime."
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Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti said in a statement that the plan "continues where my predecessor’s Navigation Plan left off and sets our course to raise our Fleet’s baseline level of readiness and put more ready Players on the Field – platforms that are ready with the requisite capabilities, weapons, and sustainment and people that are ready with the right mindset, skills, tools, and training."
"The challenge posed by the PRC to our Navy now goes well beyond just the size of the PLA Navy fleet. Ships matter greatly but gone are the days when we assessed threats based purely on the number of battle force ships or tonnage," the Navy said in its Thursday report. It continued, "Through operational concepts like multi-domain precision warfare, grey zone and economic campaigns, expansion of dual use infrastructure (e.g., airfields) and dual use forces (e.g., Chinese maritime militia), and a growing nuclear arsenal, the PRC presents a complex multi-domain and multi-axis threat."
The new plan also notes Russia's continued relevance in the East Asian sphere, noting that though "wounded and isolated" by the ongoing conflict with Ukraine, Russia remains a technological and operational threat.
Taiwan, also known as the Republic of China, is an island off the coast of the Asian mainland. Taiwan was maintained as a hold-out by the Republican government in the 1940s, declaring itself independent of the rising People's Republic of China and claiming continuation of governance from the pre-revolutionary Chinese state.
The People's Republic of China — ruled by the Chinese Communist Party — has long claimed sovereignty over Taiwan and the Taiwan Strait.
