(Washington) -- U.S. government officials and former officials revealed that President Trump is now considering building a "Golden Fleet" to replace the current fleet to better counter China and other potential future threats.
The Wall Street Journal reported that senior White House and Navy officials have been in preliminary discussions about the plan, and that Trump, who has previously criticized the exterior design of warships, has exchanged views with Navy officials on the new ships.
Sources revealed that the new fleet will consist of several large warships, as well as smaller vessels such as frigates, and will be equipped with more powerful long-range missiles.
Government officials and former officials said the White House and the Pentagon are also discussing building a heavily armored, next-generation large warship with a displacement of 15,000 to 20,000 tons, capable of carrying more powerful weapons systems and even a larger number of hypersonic missiles.
Clark, a retired Navy officer and senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, a U.S. think tank who participated in the discussions on the Golden Fleet, said that under the Golden Fleet concept, the Navy no longer targets a specific number of ships. Officials will focus on building a fleet of approximately 280 to 300 manned warships, supplemented by a significant number of unmanned vessels. These unmanned vessels will bridge the gap between the fleet's day-to-day operational capabilities and those required in conflict.
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Admiral Paparo, commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command, has discussed using this model in the Pacific, deploying thousands of unmanned submarines, surface ships, and drones in the waters of the Taiwan Strait. In the event of a Chinese invasion, these ships would flood the 160-kilometer waterway separating mainland China and Taiwan, blocking the advance of Chinese forces and buying time for Taiwan, the United States, and its allies to respond.
Another retired naval officer, Montgomery, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, while appreciating Trump's priority for naval ship development, believes the government should continue to invest in modernizing domestic shipyards and addressing the current backlog of ship repairs.
"I'm all for a complete overhaul of the fleet, but I'm not sure super-large surface combatants are the right choice," Montgomery said.
He noted that while Trump has questioned the design of some ships, the president's opinions are not the correct criteria for evaluating tactical needs.
In addition to the above-mentioned Golden Fleet plan, Trump previously ordered the military to build the Golden Dome missile defense system in January this year. He also announced a new Golden Card visa program in September to attract wealthy people around the world to immigrate to the United States.
