China’s new aircraft carrier pushes India, Japan, South Korea to upgrade: ‘source of anxiety’

China currently operates two aircraft carriers, the Liaoning and the Shandong. It launched the Fujian, a next-generation 80,000-tonne aircraft carrier larger than those operated by India or Japan, last month.

Former Indian naval officer C. Uday Bhaskar said China’s assertiveness was putting pressure on Asian nations to build out their naval capabilities.

“China is seen as a source of anxiety by some Asian nations, including India. There is concern about China’s revisionist agenda and this can rapidly morph into a threat ,” Bhaskar said.

Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh last month said India would soon commence building its third aircraft carrier. Analysts say a third aircraft carrier is essential for the Indian navy to match China’s capabilities.

Bhaskar, a director at the New Delhi-based Society for Policy Studies think tank and an honorary fellow of India’s National Maritime Foundation, said Japan and South Korea were seeking ways to engage Beijing to establish a practical and peaceful coexistence.

“These nations see their navies as insurance for the long term, if they decide to go down that path [engage in a war].”

Japan in April unveiled upgrades to its first aircraft carrier the Kaga that entered service in 2017 as a helicopter carrier, but has now been upgraded to carry Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II stealth fighters.

The Kaga will undergo a second round of modifications to its hull in 2026-27 to help support its role as a carrier of fixed-wing warplanes.

Kaga’s sister ship Izumo, commissioned in 2015, will also be modified in a process expected to finish in 2027. The two ships were commissioned as helicopter carriers that could be upgraded to carry fixed-wing fighters if needed.

After the upgrade, both ships will