By Enoch Wong
As Hong Kong celebrates the 28th anniversary of its return to Chinese rule, Beijing has once again deployed a powerful naval fleet, this time spearheaded by the aircraft carrier Shandong, highlighting both symbolic significance and strategic resolve amid escalating geopolitical tensions.
China’s first domestically built aircraft carrier and its fleet arrived in Hong Kong on Thursday morning, embarking on a five-day visit, which is set to include public tours this weekend.
The Shandong is accompanied by three other domestically designed warships – the destroyers Yanan and Zhanjiang, and the frigate Yuncheng – as well as a dozen advanced J-15 carrier fighters and helicopters.
The visit echoes the highly publicised arrival of the Liaoning carrier strike group eight years ago. But according to military analysts and political observers, the Shandong’s visit holds greater significance due to current geopolitical sensitivities and historical context.
“The primary purpose of sending China’s first home-built carrier to Hong Kong is to offer a direct, profound insight into the nation’s comprehensive strength, military modernisation and armed forces development,” said Song Zhongping, a former People’s Liberation Army (PLA) instructor.
The military expert also described the event as “a unique exercise in patriotic and national defence education”.
The timing is also significant as it takes place just weeks ahead of the official 80th anniversary commemorations of the victory in the war against Japan, recalling Hong Kong’s historic role.
Before the Japanese occupation in 1941, the city served as a vital gateway for international aid. During the occupation, the East River Column, a guerilla force put together by the Communist Party to fight the Japanese during the Second World War, maintained steadfast resistance.
The port call aimed to “impress upon the Hong Kong public Beijing’s, or more precisely, the ruling CCP’s [Chinese Communist Party] quest for building what’s termed as the status of a maritime great power”, said Collin Koh, senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies based in Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University.
He added that the visit sent a strong domestic message, countering perceived foreign interference and underscoring Beijing’s authority.
Koh also highlighted the geopolitical resonance of the visit, especially as Britain’s HMS Prince of Wales carrier strike group concluded a week-long deployment to Singapore while notably bypassing the South China Sea.
“It could be seen as a political signal, given Hong Kong’s history as a British colony,” he said.
This shift, from historical visits of British and American carriers to the exclusive presence of Chinese ones, symbolises the changing power dynamics in the region.
After the passage of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act amid the 2019 citywide unrest, Beijing indefinitely suspended US Navy port calls, halting American carrier visits to the city.
The act, signed into law by US President Donald Trump in November 2019 during his first term, mandates annual reviews of Hong Kong’s political autonomy to justify the city’s since-revoked special trade status and empowers Washington to sanction officials deemed to have violated human rights.
Anthony Wong Tong, senior military researcher and president of the Macau International Military Association, said the previous US visits reinforced a “colonial mindset” among some Hong Kong residents.
“To purge lingering colonial sentiments, China’s own carriers must now occupy this symbolic space,” Wong said.
Song, meanwhile, said that eight years ago, the Liaoning made a special trip to Hong Kong, with its preparations largely focused on a display mission.
But the Shandong has arrived in the city in a fully operational posture after a successful dual carrier far-sea combat exercise with the Liaoning in the Western Pacific last month.
It crossed the so-called second island chain for the first time, challenging decades of US strategic containment and military doctrine.
“When touring the battle-ready Shandong, Hong Kong citizens will see the difference,” Song said. “It carries the scent of gunpowder from recent operations, making it appear battle-hardened.”
Hong Kong-based military analyst Leung Kwok-leung highlighted the significance of this operational readiness.
“This speaks volumes about the vessel’s quality and the crew’s high-level training. For me, this is deeply reassuring,” he said.
Leung described the aircraft carrier as “the ultimate symbol of comprehensive national power”, emphasising the opportunity for international observers, including foreign diplomats and, particularly, Taiwanese residents in Hong Kong, to witness the PLA’s strength first-hand.
With tensions rising over Taiwan, the deployment of the Shandong also sends a stark message. While not explicitly linked to any Taiwan-related contingencies, its presence signals preparedness.
“Seeing is believing,” Leung said. “Docking a fully operational carrier in Hong Kong serves as powerful propaganda, countering negative Western narratives more effectively than advertisements in New York’s Times Square.
“Its design philosophy and standard of craftsmanship are now open to direct scrutiny from both Chinese and foreign observers, experts and the general public alike. This demonstrates a high level of strategic confidence and military pride on China’s part.”
Tensions across the Taiwan Strait have surged, particularly after the 2024 election of the island’s leader, William Lai Ching-te, whom Beijing brands a “dangerous separatist”.
Since then, Beijing has intensified military activity around the island, including frequent incursions into Taiwan’s so-called air defence identification zone, while pledging eventual reunification as a core national objective.
Most countries, including the US, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state, but Washington is committed to providing arms for the island’s self-defence and opposes any use of force to alter the cross-strait status quo.
The rivalry between China and the United States is deepening, with Washington imposing fresh tariffs while continuing the previous administration’s Section 301 investigation aimed at undermining the Asian country’s shipbuilding sector.
Wong said Hong Kong’s significance stems from its traditional role as “a meeting point for Eastern and Western cultures, and its status as an international, open port city.”
“With the trend of ‘the East rising and the West declining’, and the gradual deterioration of Sino-foreign relations, China now knows it can do as it pleases,” he said. “It has evolved to the point where it is using Hong Kong as a platform, an international stage, to project its image as a great power, including its military image.”
Wong added that, from a strictly military perspective, relying on a single vessel to make a breakthrough was unrealistic.
“In terms of tonnage and performance, there is still a considerable gap with the Americans … but in terms of scale, China’s navy is the largest in the world, something even the US cannot afford to ignore,” he said.
“Plus, politically, it sends the message: Do not look down on me any more.”
Wong added that the average person would struggle to grasp the true naval gap between China and the US.
He also said he observed that morale in Hong Kong was currently very low and that the economic environment was poor.
“Nationalism is the most potent tool, and for nationalism, military hardware and weapons provide the best image,” he said.
“Whether they fight well or not is another question, but at least they look impressive now. In the past, you would not even give them a second look … But now, at the very least, they are impressive even without a fight.”
Wong said Beijing also hoped to show people in mainland China that Hong Kong remained prosperous and strong.
“Look at all the patriotic Hong Kong citizens who spontaneously fought online for tickets to see the Shandong. This time, even more Hong Kong people want to see it than when the Liaoning came eight years ago,” he said.
Wong predicted that visits by Chinese aircraft carriers would become a tradition.
“Every new class of aircraft carrier will probably visit Hong Kong,” he said. “You can already see the trend. Hong Kong can probably look forward to the Fujian visiting one day – it is bound to come.”