China has finally put into service its new generation J-20 stealth fighter with the hope its air force will get the much needed military muscle to compete with the United States. The J-20 is a result of China's ambitious military modernization process that is been personally overseen by President Xi Jingping.

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A report televised on China's state television channel confirmed that the J-20 has now entered the service, but provided no further details.

China publicly displayed the J-20 aircraft for the first time at the Zhuhai air show in 2014, while it was briefly spotted by Chinese people in 2010. The air show also displayed another Chinese stealth fighter J-31, which is still in the production stage.

After joining the service, the question now remains is whether the J-20 can really compete with its closest U.S. competitor Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor, which is a fifth generation fifth-generation stealth tactical fighter aircraft.

Meanwhile, China is equally focused on modernizing its navy, which it considers to be an important military proponent especially in the wake President Donald Trump's highly anticipated hot pursuit policies on the South China Sea and the East China Sea.

The Chinese navy will get the country's first indigenously prepared aircraft carrier 'Shandong' by most probably 2020. The aircraft carrier is currently under construction in the China's north-eastern port city of Dalian.

After entering the service, it will patrol the Chinese sea along with the existing aircraft carrier 'Liaoning,' which recently took part in a military exercise that was conducted in the disputed South China Sea.

Wang Weiming, deputy chief of staff of the People's Liberation Army Navy, told Xinhua at the sidelines of the annual Chinese parliament session that Chinese navy is fully capable of responding to any intrusion in its maritime territory.               

"We will intercept any intruding aircraft and follow every military vessel in areas under our responsibility," Wang said. "Our sailors should stay vigilant and be able to deal with emergencies at all times."     

Earlier this week, Chinese government surprised everyone as it did not follow the usual practice of not making defense budget public on the first day of the parliament session. It then later announced that China's annual military budget will increase only by 7 percent to 1.044 trillion yuan ($151.12 billion). This is the second year in a row that Chinese military budget has increased by a single digit.

Tagschina, J-20 Stealth Fighter, Chinese military, Chinese Jet Fighters, Chinese air force