US seeks shipbuilding expertise from South Korea and Japan to counter
China
[August 18, 2025] By
ALBEE ZHANG
WASHINGTON (AP) — American lawmakers are using a trip to South Korea and
Japan to explore how the United States can tap those allies’
shipbuilding expertise and capacity to help boost its own capabilities,
which are dwarfed by those of China.
Sens. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., and Andy Kim, D-N.J., who are scheduled
to land in Seoul on Sunday before traveling to Japan, plan to meet top
shipbuilders from the world’s second- and third-largest shipbuilding
countries. The senators want to examine the possibilities of forming
joint ventures to construct and repair noncombatant vessels for the U.S.
Navy in the Indo-Pacific and bring investments to American shipyards.
“We already have fewer capacity now than we did during Operation Iraqi
Freedom" in 2003, Duckworth told The Associated Press. “We have to
rebuild the capacity. At the same time, what capacity we have is aging
and breaking down and taking longer and more expensive to fix.”
Their trip comes as President Donald Trump demands a plan to revive U.S.
shipyards and engage foreign partners. The Pentagon is seeking $47
billion for shipbuilding in its annual budget. The urgency stems from
the fact that Washington severely lags behind China in building naval
ships, a situation raising alarms among policymakers who worry the
maritime balance of power could shift to China, now the world's No. 1
shipbuilder.
Duckworth, who serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said she
hopes the trip could lead to joint ventures among the U.S. military,
American companies and foreign partners to build auxiliary vessels for
the Navy and small boats for the Army.
Another possibility is repairing U.S. ships in the Indo-Pacific region.
“If we have to bring ships all the way back to the United States ... to
wait two years to be fixed, that doesn’t help the situation,” Duckworth
said.
The discussions, she said, will focus on auxiliary vessels, which are
noncombatant ships such as fueling and cargo vessels that support naval
and military operations. The Navy's auxiliary fleet is aging and
insufficient in numbers, she said.
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Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., speaks during a hearing on Capitol Hill,
April 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
 The U.S. commercial shipbuilding
accounted for 0.1% of global capacity in 2024, while China produced
53%, followed by South Korea and Japan, according to a report by the
Center for Strategic and International Studies. A Navy review from
April 2024 found that many of its major shipbuilding programs were
one year to three years behind schedule.
During the trip, the senators are expected to meet representatives
from major shipbuilders in the region.
South Korea and the U.S. are already making progress on shipbuilding
cooperation. In March, Hanwha Ocean completed maintenance work for a
41,000-ton U.S. Navy dry cargo and ammunition ship in South Korea.
The overhaul of USNS Wally Schirra was the Korean company's first
project after it secured a repair agreement with the U.S. Navy in
July 2024.
Hanwha Group last year acquired Philly Shipyard in Philadelphia,
which builds large merchant mariners, part of the reserve auxiliary
fleet.
Earlier this month, South Korea proposed to invest $150 billion in
the U.S. shipbuilding industry to support Trump’s “Make American
Shipbuilding Great Again” initiative as part of its tariffs talk
with the White House.
Duckworth said she had earlier conversations with Hyundai Heavy
Industries “about them actually buying into U.S. shipyards on U.S.
soil”.
This month, China formed the world’s biggest shipbuilding company by
merging two state-owned shipbuilders. The combined entity China
State Shipbuilding Corporation produces Chinese navy’s combat
vessels from aircraft carriers to nuclear submarines. It commands
21.5% of global shipbuilding market.
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