Donald Trump unveils new class of battleships named after himself

President Donald Trump has announced that the United States will commission a new series of heavily armed Navy “battleships” bearing his name as part of a revamped “Golden Fleet.”

Construction is expected to begin soon on the Trump-class USS Defiant ship, which will be equipped to carry an array of weapons; Trump said the first ships will be operational in two and a half years.

The announcement is part of a plan by President Trump to expand the US Navy with both manned and unmanned ships, including larger missile-armed warships and smaller ships.

Officials warned that the United States currently lags behind China in both shipbuilding capacity and total production.

Speaking at the Mar-a-Lago golf club in Florida on Monday alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Navy Secretary John Phelan, Trump said he had approved the start of construction of two new warships, with plans to build up to 25.

“These will be the fastest, largest and by far 100 times more powerful than any warship ever built,” Trump said.

Once completed, the armed ships will be equipped to carry hypersonic and “extremely lethal” weapons and will be the flagships of the US Navy, Trump said.

Speaking with posters showing drawings of “Trump-class” ships on either side, Trump said the ships would be built domestically and their construction would create “thousands” of jobs.

In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, Phelan said Trump specifically wanted a “big, beautiful” battleship-type ship as part of the fleet, which would also include dozens of support and transport ships.

On December 19, the U.S. Navy announced another new set of ships based on the U.S. Coast Guard’s Legend-class National Security Cutter.

“Recent operations from the Red Sea to the Caribbean make this requirement undeniable; our small surface combatant inventory is one-third of what we have,” Chief of Naval Operations Daryl Caudle said in a video statement about the new ships. he said.

“We need more capable blue water junior warriors to close the gap and maintain our balance. [destroyers] “We are focused on high-level competition,” he added.

A similar ship, the Constellatio-class frigate that Trump approved during his first term in office, was canceled in 2024 after repeated delays and cost overruns.

It has been reported that only two ships are expected to be delivered after nearly $2bn (£1.49bn) was spent on the project.

U.S. officials and defense analysts have repeatedly warned that the United States is falling behind China, its main potential maritime rival, in shipbuilding capacity.

More than 60% of world orders this year have gone to Chinese shipyards, and China’s navy is already the largest in the world.

Since returning to office in January, Trump has promised to revitalize the US shipbuilding industry.

“We used to build too many ships,” Trump said in March. “We don’t do a lot of these things, but we will do them very quickly, very soon. This will have a huge impact.”

In October, Trump and Finnish President Alexander Stubb signed an agreement for the United States to purchase 11 Finnish-designed icebreakers; seven of these were built in the United States with Finnish expertise.

The president’s announcement also comes as U.S. naval and air assets are flocking to the Caribbean amid rising tensions with Venezuela.

The USA started attacking ships allegedly carrying drugs in September, and at least 100 people died in the attacks.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Trump claimed that thousands of American lives were saved due to boat attacks that prevented deadly drugs from entering the United States.

The attacks were criticized by some experts who said they could violate international laws governing armed conflict.