U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday (December 22, 2025) announced a new class of heavily armed warships that will be named after himself — an honour usually reserved for leaders who have left office. Asked if the planned warships are a counter to Washington’s rival Beijing, Mr. Trump declined to specify, instead saying: “It’s a counter to everybody, it’s not China. They will also be capable of carrying atomic weapons in the form of the nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile, Trump said. The Trump-class ships will be substantially larger than existing U.S. destroyers and cruisers, but the projected displacement cited by the president is somewhat smaller than the last American battleships — from the Iowa class — which were retired in the 1990s. “We’re going to restore America as a major shipbuilding power,” Mr. Trump said on Monday, adding: “We’re going to ensure the USA has the most powerful fleet anywhere in the world, and long into the future, with battleships helping lead the way.”

Source: The Hindu December 23, 2025 03:36 UTC