Mainland China shipbuilding for Taiwanese firm likely aiding PLA Navy build-up, says US think tank
- Taiwan’s Evergreen Marine Corp has bought 44 vessels from mainland since 2018, all but two of which from shipyards that produce PLA warships, says CSIS
- Washington-based think tank says democracies in the region should instead consider buying vessels from South Korea and Japan
Contracts between mainland China’s top state-owned shipbuilding firm and Taiwan’s leading shipping company are likely to be lowering the costs of upgrading the PLA Navy, posing security concerns for the island claimed by Beijing, a US think tank said on Thursday.
02:19
Taiwan holds urban, aerial combat drills amid threats of invasion by mainland China
The Washington-based think tank said foreign companies, including from US allies such as France, also bought ships from CSSC, which the United States has placed on an investment blacklist for US individuals and companies because of its links to Beijing’s military.
CSIS said while there was limited transparency on the flow of foreign capital in mainland China’s shipbuilding industry, “available evidence indicates that profits from foreign orders are likely lowering the costs of upgrading China’s navy”.
US plans biggest warship in decades amid growing tensions with China: analysts
Self-governed Taiwan has complained about increased military pressure by Beijing, which has never renounced the use of force to bring the island under its control.
The CSIS study included commercial satellite imagery from February 2022 showing at least three Evergreen hulls under construction near Beijing’s newest aircraft carrier at CSSC’s subsidiary Jiangnan shipyard near Shanghai. Evergreen vessels have also been docked next to PLA navy cruisers and destroyers, it said.
The imagery “suggests there is direct sharing of resources between military and civilian operations at China’s key shipyards,” CSIS said.
01:51
First made-in-China aircraft carrier, the Shandong, enters service
Evergreen said in a statement all its containership projects were subject to international bidding, and that its contracts with CSSC’s commercial shipbuilding department were “completely different and separate” from CSSC’s military department.
“We believe the civil commercial shipbuilding activities have nothing to do with national naval projects,” it said, adding that it had disclosed information about its orders to investors and authorities.
Window for possible PLA attack on Taiwan ‘unpredictable’, US admiral says
Mainland China already has the world’s largest navy, with a greater number of warships and submarines than the US.
Taiwan rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims, and says only the island’s people can decide their future.
