Jonathan Adams reports in the Christian Science Monitor:
Reports of a massive new naval base in southern China have fueled more concerns in the West and Asia about the rapid rise of China’s military.
The underground base can reportedly hold up to 20 submarines, including new nuclear-armed submarines. It is also apparently big enough to hold future aircraft carrier groups if China decides to build them.
Military analysts say that the base is part of China’s long-term plan to beef up its naval and nuclear might. They say the expansion is aimed at deterring Taiwan from making its de facto independence permanent, better protecting China’s seaborne energy supplies, and projecting Chinese power far beyond its shores.
Read also: China’s new naval base triggers US concerns.
