PLA Navy in future will have world-class ships, but not the expertise to operate them, military observers say

The PLA’s recall of retired naval officers for recent maritime drills has exposed a deep shortage of talent in the ranks due to the military’s defective training and succession system, defence observers say.

More problems would come to light if nothing was done to rectify the outdated and bureaucratic methods of training and promoting staff as the People’s Liberation Army Navy expanded rapidly with more advanced warships and armaments, the experts warned.

China will have the world’s second-largest naval fleet by 2030 after the United States based on the aggregate tonnage of its modern surface warships, according to the Chinese-language Kanwa Defence Review.

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