To the Editor:

“China, Shoring Up Its Navy, Muscles Into Pacific” (front page, Aug. 29) dramatized the fact that the Chinese Navy now possesses more ships than America’s. Some might interpret this as a harbinger of the decline of American military pre-eminence and global leadership. In fact, it’s nothing of the sort.

Even on the simple, crude measure of the size of navies, the United States remains way ahead. The reason is simple.

Aggregate tonnage is a better single metric for the size of a navy than the number of ships is. Although China has (modestly) more seafaring vessels than the United States, ours are on average bigger.

The United States Navy values the size (and quality, and armaments) of vessels over their sheer number. It chooses to build 100,000-ton, flat-deck aircraft carriers; 40,000-ton smaller aircraft carriers; large amphibious ships for moving marines; big surface combatants with sophisticated radar systems and advanced missile defense and land-attack capabilities; and large nuclear-powered submarines with long ranges.