The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is suspected of converting its People’s Liberation Army Navy Type 052D missile destroyer into a coast guard ship, equipped with naval guns but lacking vertical launch positions for missiles. Experts suggest that the CCP may potentially use these coast guard ships on a large scale beyond the first island chain to expand its operations in the gray zone. This move is likely to raise concerns among nations in the Indo-Pacific region and escalate military competition in the area.
A recent satellite image from the Jiangnan Shipyard in Shanghai circulating on mainland China’s military forums indicates the construction of a vessel resembling the CCP’s Navy Type 052D missile destroyer.
Compared to surrounding ships, this new vessel is at least 150 meters long with a slim body. However, unlike the 052D, this new ship only has space for installing naval guns, with the original vertical missile launch system and the 32 vertical launch tubes in the front hangar completely removed. This suggests that its primary weapon may only be a naval gun.
Analysis from various sources suggests that this might be a coast guard ship designed based on a military ship’s hull or a conversion of a military vessel into a coast guard ship. Previously, the CCP had used its Navy Type 054A frigates as platforms to build 818 patrol vessels for the coast guard. Between 2021 and 2022, the CCP also converted 22 Type 056 missile destroyers into coast guard ships.
Dr. Su Ziyun, Director of the Strategic and Resource Department at the Taiwan Institute for National Defense and Security Studies, stated that the CCP’s ambition is shifting from land power to sea power, with the navy and coast guard serving as two tools—one to assert maritime dominance and the other to manage it. The role of coast guard vessels may become more prominent as the CCP seeks to expand its activities in the gray zone beyond the first island chain.
Dr. Su explained that the conversion of the CCP’s 1500-ton Type 056 frigates into white-painted coast guard ships after retirement, with the weapons removed, indicates an expansion of CCP ambitions in the vicinity of the first island chain.
“The so-called ‘management of sea power’ by the CCP is essentially bullying other nations. The 7000-ton 052D vessel is capable of long-range operations, symbolizing its intent to control seas beyond the second island chain. If necessary, it could also carry out blockades in the Indian Ocean. The CCP uses coast guard vessels for expanding activities in the gray zone,” Dr. Su added.
The first island chain stretches from Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and Taiwan in the north to the Philippines, Greater Sunda Islands, and New Zealand in the south. The second island chain, centered around Guam, comprises the Ogasawara Islands of Japan, the Sulawesi Islands, and the Mariana Islands of the United States.
Dr. Zhong Zidong, a scholar at the Taiwan Institute for National Defense and Security Studies, analyzed that if the CCP builds coast guard ships based on the 052D model exceeding 7000 tons, it would surpass all current vessels in the East Asian region. Moreover, it is likely that the CCP would not only construct a few such vessels since they previously had coast guard ships exceeding 10,000 tons.
“These giant ship hulls made of alloy steel plates are stronger than traditional steel plates. Without using firearms in maritime conflicts, the advantage lies in their massive and robust structure,” Dr. Zhong stated.
Dr. Zhong believes that the CCP’s conversion of military vessels into coast guard ships reflects its concrete actions to strengthen jurisdiction in disputed maritime areas following the issuance of the Coast Guard Law.
In June, the Chinese Coast Guard issued a directive for enforcing administrative law enforcement procedures under the 2021 “Coast Guard Law,” allowing for inspections, detentions, and confiscations of foreign vessels and personnel suspected of violating immigration regulations in waters deemed under CCP jurisdiction. This has sparked international controversies.
Dr. Zhong stated that the CCP is attempting to enhance its conflict capabilities and leverage in the gray zone through coast guards, intensifying naval competition in the East Asian region. There have been reports that Japan intends to build a 30,000-ton large patrol vessel to prepare for conflicts in the gray zone.
Public records indicate that the Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) is a maritime law enforcement agency absorbed into the People’s Armed Police Force following a 2013 CCP State Council restructuring, combining agencies such as the Maritime Safety Administration, Fishery Law Enforcement Command, and Customs Anti-Smuggling Command. By the end of 2023, the CCG possessed over 120 public enforcement vessels of at least 1,000 tons.
The CCG boasts two of the world’s largest patrol vessels, “Haixun 2901” and “Haixun 5901” (formerly Yuan 3901), operating in the East China Sea and South China Sea, respectively. Among them, the larger “Haixun 5901” entered service in 2016 with a tonnage of 12,000 tons.
In response to CCP threats and provocations, Japan has expanded maritime alliances with the United States, South Korea, and other countries besides providing large patrol vessels to the Philippines. Furthermore, Japan plans to construct a 30,000-ton super-large patrol vessel to establish maritime bases in the event of contingencies involving Taiwan. This information was reported by NHK in June 2023.
Territorial disputes persist between the CCP and multiple countries in the Indo-Pacific region.
Following recent conflicts between the Philippine Navy and CCP coast guard personnel in the South China Sea, tensions escalated. Under the 1951 U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty, the United States is obligated to provide assistance if Philippine forces or vessels in the Pacific region come under “armed attack.”
In the Taiwan Strait, four CCP coast guard vessels conducted coordinated entries into restricted waters off Kinmen and near the southern Fuxing Island on June 25. Taiwanese coast guard units were deployed for two hours to repel them. Prior to this incident, CCP coast guard ships had deliberately entered Taiwan’s outlying island waters seven times in May.
Dr. Zhong emphasized that the CCP’s enforcement in disputed maritime areas through coast guards lacks legitimacy and resorts to bullying tactics in the international arena, damaging its global reputation.
“The United States has long considered the CCP’s coast guard and maritime militia units, now under the central military commission, as equivalent to the navy. This undermines the operational space of coast guard ships in the gray zone,” Dr. Zhong stated.
He pointed out that in the ongoing arms race, the CCP may not necessarily outpace the U.S. and other relevant countries in the future. A joint action by the United States and regional countries to counterbalance CCP’s excessive sovereignty claims would put the CCP at a disadvantage.
Dr. Su Ziyun also highlighted that CCP’s actions have alerted other nations, leading to stronger unity among democratic countries. “Currently, a 7000-ton vessel like the 052D can undertake maritime tasks beyond the second island chain, which stimulates other countries. Beijing is essentially shooting itself in the foot.”
The biennial Rim of the Pacific Exercise commenced on June 27, with participation from 29 countries, showcasing a larger scale compared to 2022 and will continue until August 1.
Dr. Su mentioned that the United States is expanding its security alliances, and the Rim of the Pacific Exercise itself is a response to the CCP’s heightened activities around the first and second island chains. “By posing threats, the CCP accelerates other countries shifting towards the United States.”