After four years of construction, China launched its third aircraft carrier on Friday.

The ship was named after the province of Fujian, which, as the nationalist party newspaper Global Times pointed out, lies on the Taiwan Straits.

The naming ceremony at Shanghai's Jiangnan Shipyard was presided over by Deputy Chief of the Military Commission Xu Qiliang.

He is also a member of the Communist Party Politburo.

The Military Commission, led by President Xi Jinping, is a party body more powerful than the Defense Ministry.

Friederike Böge

Political correspondent for China, North Korea and Mongolia.

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State television published photos and videos of the launch.

It features red banners reaffirming Xi Jinping's stated goal of building a "world-class navy" by 2035.

The slogan conceals an intention to project China's military might to more distant sea regions and to challenge US military dominance in the Indo-Pacific in the event of a conflict.

On Chinese social media, news of the launch was accompanied by patriotic enthusiasm orchestrated by state media.

The Fujian aircraft carrier is a symbol of China's rapidly growing military power and the strength of its defense industry.

It is equipped with an electromagnetic catapult system that allows planes to take off and land.

According to the United States, the system allows for the use of "additional combat aircraft, early warning aircraft and faster flight operations, thereby increasing the range and effectiveness of carrier-based combat aircraft".

So says the Pentagon's most recent report to Congress on China's military.

On its two previous smaller aircraft carriers, China still relied on a ski-jump-like ramp.

The launch was actually expected by experts in April, but was apparently postponed due to the corona lockdown in Shanghai.

In late May, satellite images showed that another ship had been removed from the dock to make way for the launch.

Analysts from the American Center for Strategic and International Studies then expected a ceremony on the day of the traditional Dragon Boat Festival.

It was initially unclear why this Friday was selected for the highly symbolic moment instead.

According to the Pentagon, the "Fujian" could be put into service in 2024.

At least three more Chinese aircraft carriers are expected to be launched by 2035.

For comparison: The American Navy currently operates with eleven aircraft carriers.

Measured by the number of warships, China has the largest naval fleet in the world with around 355 ships and submarines.

The second aircraft carrier, the "Shandong", is currently in the test phase and is also scheduled to enter service in 2024.

China bought the fuselage of its first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, from Ukraine in 1998 under false pretenses.

An entrepreneur served as a middleman with the requirement of wanting to turn it into a casino ship in Macau.

The "Liaoning" was put into operation at the end of 2019.

To increase the reach of its navy, China has been using its first foreign military base in Djibouti since 2017.

The American government assumes that Beijing will develop a port in Cambodia as an additional base.

China and Cambodia deny this.