Why Does China Want Aircraft Carriers?

Harry J. Kazianis

Defense, Asia

And you thought China was trying to 'kill carriers'? Beijing wants its own. Why you ask? We explain. 

The People’s Republic of China is the only nation on Earth building not one but two “carrier-killer” missiles. Yet, China is also one of just a handful of countries who wants to build more carriers. Odd? Not exactly, if you know the history and why Beijing wants carriers in the first place.

Indeed, there is a tremendous amount of publicly available information when it comes to Beijing’s carrier program, with the history of the program being completely fascinating. For example, in a recent article for U.S. Naval War College Review, Andrew Scobell, Michael McMahon and Cortez A. Cooper III explain the drivers behind the program, operational capacities and possible future directions. The full article is available here. Don’t have time to read the whole thing? No problem, I personally feel understanding the drivers of the program is key. With that said, here is what you need to know on the topic:

The Drivers                

While the authors point out several drivers behind the program, nationalism seems to be a big part of the mix:

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