The shipbuilding empire fueling China’s naval rise is a juggernaut, but tough questions remain

“Perhaps the PLAN can run its fleet more economically than the US Navy would,” Mike Sweeney, a non-resident fellow at Defense Priorities, wrote in April. “But operational budgets can only be reduced so far.”

“Fuel and the provision of other essential supplies to an active blue-water fleet are unavoidable expenditures,” Sweeney added. “Maintenance is another area where outlays will inevitably climb, the more consistently China deploys its fleet in global waters.”

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