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Chinese warship in the Arabian Sea
Photo: Fareed Khan/AP
US Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro has expressed concern about the strength of the Chinese Navy and has called for a significant upgrade of US naval forces.
China's navy has now numerically overtaken the US naval forces and could also build more ships in the future: "They now have a larger fleet and use it worldwide," he said in front of the National Press Club in the US capital Washington, as the US Broadcaster CNN reports.
China "constantly seeks to disrupt the maritime sovereignty and economic well-being of other nations, including our allies in the South China Sea and elsewhere," he said.
In response, the US would have to increase and modernize its fleet: "We need a larger Navy, we need more and more modern ships in the future, which can counter this particular threat," he added.
The Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy could commission up to 400 ships in the coming years, Del Toro said.
About 340 are currently operational.
The US fleet, on the other hand, has fewer than 300 ships.
In the future, China is likely to increase its lead even further.
According to the US Navy's "Navigation Plan 2022" from last summer, the Pentagon aims to have 350 manned ships by 2045.
According to CNN, the number is well below the forecast for the Chinese fleet.
In addition, the US Navy is likely to shrink before this goal is reached, as older ships have to be phased out.
According to Del Toro, China has larger shipbuilding capacities
Del Toro also warned about China's shipbuilding capabilities.
The US naval yards could not match the performance of the Chinese yards: “They have 13 yards, in some cases their yard has more capacity – one yard has more capacity than all our yards combined.
It's a real threat,' he explained.
The Navy Minister did not provide details on those shipyards, but according to Chinese and Western reports, China has six major and two smaller shipyards that build naval vessels, CNN reports.
In the US, seven shipyards make ships for the US Navy and Coast Guard, it says.
There is a shortage of workers in the US naval shipyards
Another problem is the number of workers in the shipyards. According to Del Toro, China also has the numerical advantage here.
In the USA it is difficult to find qualified personnel.
The Navy Minister also accused the People's Republic of using "slave labor" to build ships: "They are a communist country, they have no rules to follow," he said.
"They use slave labor to build their ships - that's not the way we should ever do business, but that's what we're dealing with, so it's a significant advantage," he claimed.
However, this allegation is unconfirmed, reports CNN, citing expert statements.
"Unfortunately, it seems common for naval leaders to throw stones at actual or imagined flaws in Chinese shipbuilding, rather than addressing the failures of the US over two decades to conceive, design and build ships for its own navy ' said Blake Herzinger, defense expert at the conservative US think tank American Enterprise Institute.
Carlos del Toro, United States Secretary of the Navy, is the civilian head of the United States Department of the Navy.
He reports to the US Secretary of Defense.
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