The People’s Liberation Army Navy is now, and has been for several years, larger than the US Navy with over 370 ships currently in commission. What’s more, in a few years, if it continues its current building rate, it will reach around 450 ships, making it larger than the US Navy and the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force combined.
However, Western commentators, especially those who don’t want to support larger defense and shipbuilding budgets, consistently argue that the navies of the United States and Japan are more technologically advanced and hence more lethal.