China’s first indigenously built aircraft carrier Shandong
The Chinese Communist Party’s Shandong aircraft carrier formation recently conducted an exercise in the South China Sea, the military said Sunday (May 2).
The Chinese Communist Party has repeatedly complained about the proximity of U.S. Navy warships to the islands it occupies in the South China Sea. The U.S. carrier group has repeatedly sailed near the Communist Party-controlled islands in disputed waters this year.
The Chinese Communist Party military described the exercise as routine training, saying it is part of the Communist Party Navy’s annual work plan. The Shandong, which begins service in 2019, is the Communist Party’s second aircraft carrier.
According to Chinese media reports, CPC Navy spokesman Patrick Gao posted a message on the Navy’s WeChat public number saying, “Recently, the CPC Navy organized the Shandong carrier formation to conduct training in the relevant waters of the South China Sea, which is a routine training organized in accordance with the annual work plan and is completely legitimate and legal.”
The CCP Navy’s military statement said that the training of the Shandong aircraft carrier “is conducive to improving the ability to safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests, and to maintain regional peace and stability.” The statement hoped the outside world would look at it objectively and rationally, and said the Chinese Communist Navy would continue to organize similar exercises and training activities on a regular basis in the future as planned.
The Chinese Communist Navy said last month that similar drills would be conducted more frequently amid escalating tensions with Taiwan.
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