In 1996, the Chinese ordered the first of four Sovremenny-class destroyers from Russia. The ships came equipped with the most advanced antiship missiles in the world, designed specifically to hit aircraft carriers—America’s strength. China’s rocket scientists were also launched on a mission to develop a missile to take the giant vessels out of action. (During a parade to commemorate the seventieth anniversary of the end of World War II, in September 2015, China unveiled the East Wind DF-21D, the world’s first antiship ballistic missile.)
