People's Liberation Army Navy

The People's Liberation Army Navy, often called the PLA Navy or the Chinese Navy, is the maritime service branch of China's People's Liberation Army. It was formally established on 23 April 1949 and traces its lineage to maritime fighting units of the Chinese Civil War, including elements of the Republic of China Navy that defected. For decades it was mainly a coastal defence and patrol force, but after the 1990s it shifted toward operating in the marginal seas and then farther out as a blue-water navy. It is made up of the Surface Force, the Submarine Force, the Coastal Defense Force, the Marine Corps and the Naval Air Force, organized into North Sea, East Sea and South Sea fleets, and by 2024 it kept more than 700 warships and support vessels.