US President Donald Trump announced plans to construct a new class of massive battleships, dubbed the ‘Golden Fleet’, in a bid to restore American naval supremacy and revitalise domestic shipbuilding.
Speaking at a Mar-a-Lago news conference on Monday, Trump described the vessels as the largest and most powerful battleships ever built.
Flanked by Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Navy Secretary John Phelan, Trump said construction would begin immediately with two initial ships. He projected that the fleet could eventually expand to 20–25 vessels.
“They’ll be the fastest, the biggest, and 100 times more powerful than any battleship ever built,” Trump claimed, emphasising that the ships would surpass the historic Iowa-class battleships in size and firepower.
According to Trump, the new battleships will feature advanced missile systems, hypersonic weapons, laser technology, state-of-the-art targeting systems, and the ability to launch nuclear-armed cruise missiles.
He described them as ‘some of the most lethal surface warfare ships’ capable of anchoring a revival of US maritime power.
Navy Secretary Phelan termed the future ‘Trump-class’ battleships as ‘the largest, deadliest and most versatile warship anywhere on the world’s oceans’, designed to command naval forces, including warships and drones, across vast distances.
Trump framed the initiative as a major industrial project, promising to revive American shipyards, create thousands of jobs, and restore domestic manufacturing capabilities.
He stressed that defence contractors should reinvest profits into facilities rather than stock buybacks.
Rubio highlighted the broader significance, linking the plan to industrial strength, freedom of navigation, and global peace.
Defence Secretary Hegseth called the announcement a ‘generational commitment to American sea power’, connecting naval expansion to border security, counter-narcotics efforts, and deterrence.
Trump dismissed claims that the ships were aimed at any specific nation, stating, “It’s a counter to everybody. It’s not China,” and emphasised that the goal is deterrence. The announcement comes amid concerns about ageing fleets, shrinking US shipyard capacity, and rising competition from China’s expanding navy.
The US Navy built its last battleships in the mid-1990s, shifting prominence to carriers, submarines, and smaller surface combatants. The new Golden Fleet aims to revive the battleship’s role as a symbol of naval strength and command capability.
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