China debuts missile destroyer amid tensions in East Asian seas

China confirmed today that its fleet put into service earlier this month a new model 055 guided missile destroyer, the second of its kind to debut in two years, under a context of tensions in the East Asian seas, where Beijing has territorial disputes with different countries.

It is a 10,000-ton destroyer that, under the name of “Lasa”, capital of the autonomous region of Tibet, can lead solo missions although it is called upon to escort aircraft carriers.

The Asian powerhouse now has two in service and expects to have seven operational by 2025, one of them nuclear-powered.

“It is another achievement in the transformation of the Chinese Navy and will help it in its responsibilities”, Defense Ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang said today at a virtual press conference.

“Lasa” joins the destroyer “Nanchang”, which entered service in January 2020, to which we must add another six that would be released in the next two years, according to the Global Times newspaper.

Type 055s are generally considered in the cruiser category outside of China, and the local press equates them to those of the American Ticonderoga class: they have a displacement of more than 12,000 metric tons and are equipped with new types of radars and anti-aircraft weapons, of anti-missile, anti-ship and anti-submarine defense.

The “Lasa” will be part of the North Sea Fleet of the Chinese Navy, whose strategy not only involves “facing challenges” in the South China Sea, Taiwan or the disputed Senkaku / Diaoyu Islands, but also seeks to “reduce the distance with US capabilities and safeguarding its commercial interests throughout the world”, according to studies such as that of the Spanish Javier de Carlos Izquierdo, published on the website of the Spanish Navy.

“THE WORLD IS NOT THE ONE OF A HUNDRED YEARS AGO”

Ren criticized today the patrols carried out in recent months by ships from France, Germany, the United Kingdom in the South China Sea, where the United States accuses Beijing of carrying out “disruptive activities” carried out by its Coast Guard or of maintaining ” illegal claims ”that affect several countries.

Washington also this month intensified its reconnaissance operations in that area, to which China responded with military exercises and operations to resupply its fleet, state television CCTV reported today.

“The world of today is not the one of a hundred years ago, and the China of today neither. China respects the freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, but opposes this being used as an excuse to endanger the security of the region,” Ren charged.

The spokesman described the situation there as “stable” and stressed that China “does not want to threaten anyone” but “is not afraid either.”

The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei claim parts of this strategic sea – through which 30% of global trade circulates and which is home to 12% of the world’s fishing grounds, in addition to oil and gas fields – although China claims the sovereignty of those waters almost entirely.

At the moment, the Philippines is the only country that has a ruling that supports its claims, since the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague attributed the ownership of several territories in the South China Sea, the Scarborough Atoll and part of the Spratly Archipelago, where China has built military bases on artificial islands on atolls and reefs and appeals to historical rights in the area.