China’s ambitions to reach maritime military parity with the US have encountered a substantial obstacle, following reports that its latest advanced nuclear submarine sank while in dock, according to American officials.
The incident is said to have occurred last May or June at the Wuchang shipyard, located near Wuhan the same city linked to the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Despite efforts by the Chinese communist authorities to obscure the event, satellite imagery revealed the mishap.
A US defence official disclosed that the Zhou-class vessel, the first in a new class of Chinese submarines featuring an X-shaped stern to enhance manoeuvrability, is believed to have been moored adjacent to a pier at the time it sank. There remains uncertainty over whether any casualties occurred or if the submarine had nuclear fuel onboard. However, experts have suggested this possibility. The submarine was subsequently recovered, but it is expected that several months will pass before it is operational again.
American officials have noted a lack of evidence suggesting that Chinese authorities have tested the water or surrounding environment for radiation.
The People’s Liberation Army (PLA), China’s official military body, has yet to acknowledge the incident. The Wall Street Journal indicated that the first signs of an unusual event emerged in the summer when Thomas Shugart, a senior fellow at the Centre for a New American Security and a former US submarine officer, observed irregular activities involving floating cranes in satellite images, which he shared on social media. Shugart hypothesised that there might have been a submarine accident but was unaware that it involved a nuclear-powered vessel.
A US defence official later conveyed to Reuters that both the incident and the lack of transparency surrounding it raised serious concerns about the competence and accountability of the Chinese military.
The incident not only cast doubt on the training standards and equipment quality but also heightened concerns about the PLA’s internal accountability and oversight within China’s defence industry, which has been plagued by corruption issues.
It was noted that it would not be unexpected for the PLA Navy to attempt to conceal the incident.
A representative for the Chinese embassy in Washington stated that they were unfamiliar with the incident and had no details to offer.
According to a Pentagon report on China’s military, China possessed six nuclear- powered ballistic missile submarines, six nuclear-powered attack submarines, and 48 diesel-powered attack submarines as of 2022. This fleet is projected to expand to 65 submarines by 2025 and 80 by 2035, as estimated by the US Department of Defence.
The Pentagon report further highlighted that the development of these new submarines, alongside surface ships and naval aircraft, is intended to counter US efforts to support Taiwan in the event of a conflict and to establish “maritime superiority” across a chain of islands stretching from the Japanese archipelago to the South China Sea.
