LIAONING PROVINCE, China (Reuters) — China on Wednesday (April 26) launched its first domestically built aircraft carrier, which will join an existing one bought second-hand from the Ukraine, amid rising tensions over North Korea and worries about Beijing’s assertiveness in the South China Sea.
China’s state broadcaster CCTV aired the footage of the carrier at the launching ceremony on Wednesday morning.
State media said the carrier, designed in China and built in the northeast port of Dalian, is not expected to enter service until 2020.
Its launch follows China’s celebration on Sunday (April 23) of the 68th birthday of the founding of the Chinese navy.
It also comes amid renewed tensions between North Korea and the United States over Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile programs.