Chinese Dragon – The New Lord of the Seas 2: The Celestial Empire’s Strategic Ambitions

More than a decade ago, Chinese leadership set out to consolidate the shipbuilding industry, aiming for the top 10 shipyards to account for over 70% of national production, and achieved these goals ahead of schedule, overtaking traditional world shipbuilding centers such as Japan and South Korea during the 2010s. China has become almost self-sufficient in all components of the shipbuilding sector, as consolidation and the practice of military-civil fusion based on dual-use technologies have created a powerful industrial base underpinning both global trade and the Celestial Empire’s strategic ambitions.

China’s strategic approach rests on two pillars: 1) global dominance in ports and control over supply chains, and 2) consolidation of shipbuilding capacities and expansion of dual-use technologies. Together, these strategies have secured China’s position as the world’s leading shipbuilder and the largest and fastest-growing naval power. Supported by significant subsidies and national plans such as “Made in China 2025” and the “Belt and Road Initiative,” these efforts have strengthened China’s global standing at the expense of competitors, and by 2024, China controlled 55% of global shipbuilding.

An important aspect of China’s maritime strategy is ensuring control over global shipping arteries, which gives it leverage in both international trade and geoeconomics. Chinese state enterprises have invested in port infrastructure worldwide, acquiring stakes or operational control in at least 96 foreign ports, including 36 of the world’s top 100 ports by cargo volume. As of mid-2024, Chinese companies had invested in 129 overseas port projects, including 17 where they hold majority stakes—14 of which are physically capable of receiving military vessels. This growing network of port holdings across nearly all continents and key chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz and the Suez Canal underscores China’s ability to influence global trade flows. China also seeks to dominate critical maritime supply chains. Today, Chinese manufacturers produce 95% of the world’s shipping containers, 86% of intermodal chassis, and 70% of port cranes.

A crucial complementary tool of China’s digital control over global transport flows is the state digital logistics platform (LOGINK), which provides access to vast cargo transportation data, as well as companies’ confidential information on goods movement, management, and pricing. LOGINK has become dominant in global logistics management, currently holding nearly half of the global market. By dominating ports, equipment, and logistics networks, China effectively secures control over maritime supply routes, which it can use to strengthen its own economy and potentially pressure others through chokepoints or data advantages.

China’s Arctic strategy also deserves separate attention. The rapid melting of Arctic ice is turning the region into a new strategic arena. Research suggests that Arctic sea routes could reduce transit times by 30–50 percent compared to the Suez and Panama routes, accelerating trade between Asia, Europe, and North America. Equally important, the Arctic is becoming a key supplier of minerals essential for advanced technological industries and the global transition to renewable energy. Thirty-one of the thirty-four key materials for renewable energy technologies are found in the region—from vast cobalt and nickel reserves in Greenland to major zinc deposits in Alaska.

Despite lacking an Arctic coastline, China has declared itself a “near-Arctic state” and established partnerships with Russia to begin regular summer transits of Chinese cargo ships along the Northern Sea Route (NSR). Of course, China lags far behind all Arctic states, especially Russia, which is the absolute leader in the icebreaker fleet (Figure 1), but the very presence of icebreakers in this non-Arctic country speaks volumes about the Celestial Empire’s global ambitions.

Figure 1. Icebreaker fleet (number of icebreaking ships) of major countries developing the Arctic.

Source: https://prosperousamerica.org/...

Beijing’s “Polar Silk Road” envisions Chinese vessels carrying goods between Asia and Europe through polar waters, with the NSR taking about 35 days compared to 48 days via the Suez Canal.

Beyond trade interests, both China and Russia aim to develop rare earth elements, critical minerals, and hydrocarbons on the Arctic seabed. For instance, China has doubled its investments in the Arctic, focusing on projects such as mineral mining in Greenland and underwater research—often under the guise of scientific exploration—with potential dual civilian and military applications.

And what about America? Has it really accepted the loss of its hegemony in this crucial strategic sphere? More on that in the next article.