‘Trump-class’: U.S. President announces new warship fleet named after himself

U.S. President Donald Trump connected Monday (December 22, 2025) announced a caller people of heavy equipped warships that volition beryllium named aft himself — an honour usually reserved for leaders who person near office.

Two of the “Trump-class” ships volition beryllium built initially, but that fig could turn substantially, according to the President, who said they volition beryllium “some of the astir lethal aboveground warfare ships” and “the largest battleship successful the past of our country.”

Mr. Trump made the announcement astatine his Mar-a-Lago residence successful Florida alongside Pentagon main Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Navy Secretary John Phelan, with images of the planned high-tech vessels connected stands nearby.

Asked if the planned warships are a antagonistic to Washington’s rival Beijing, Mr. Trump declined to specify, alternatively saying: “It’s a antagonistic to everybody, it’s not China. We get on large with China.”

He said the ships volition measurement betwixt 30,000 and 40,000 tons and volition beryllium equipped with missiles and guns arsenic good arsenic weaponry inactive successful development, specified arsenic lasers and hypersonic missiles.

They volition besides beryllium susceptible of carrying atomic weapons successful the signifier of the nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile, Trump said.

The Trump-class ships volition beryllium substantially larger than existing U.S. destroyers and cruisers, but the projected displacement cited by the president is somewhat smaller than the past American battleships — from the Iowa people — which were retired successful the 1990s.

‘Most almighty fleet anywhere’

Mr. Trump — who has complained successful the past astir the quality of U.S. ships — said helium would beryllium progressive successful the plan on with the Navy “because I’m a precise aesthetic person.”

Mr. Trump’s announcement came conscionable days aft the Navy publicised plans for different caller people of ships — frigates dubbed the FF(X) that it said volition “complement the fleet’s larger, multi-mission warships.”

Mr. Phelan has said the FF(X) volition beryllium based connected an existing plan from shipbuilder HII that is already successful usage by the United States Coast Guard, and that the purpose is for the archetypal of the caller frigates to beryllium successful the h2o by 2028.

The caller frigate plans were announced aft Mr. Phelan said successful precocious November that 4 of six planned ships from the Constellation people of frigates would beryllium canceled, portion 2 that are already nether operation are “under review.”

Washington has fallen importantly down Beijing erstwhile it comes to the fig of ships successful its Navy, and a study to Congress earlier this twelvemonth noted that US subject officials and different observers are acrophobic by the gait of China’s shipbuilding efforts.

“We’re going to reconstruct America arsenic a large shipbuilding power,” Mr. Trump said connected Monday, adding: “We’re going to guarantee the USA has the astir almighty fleet anyplace successful the world, and agelong into the future, with battleships helping pb the way.”