I think the Carrier to the PLAN is more of a status symbol. They have global ambitions and a superpower cannot be a superpower without a carrier. China has been

I think the Carrier to the PLAN is more of a status symbol. They have global ambitions and a superpower cannot be a superpower without a carrier. China has been focusing on anti-access area denial or A2AD. This is why the various disputed islands are so crucial to the PRC's long-term strategic goals of controlling all access to the South China Sea. Along with the missile batteries sprinkled all along the Chinese coast, the PRC has been reclaiming land on disputed islands and building up a defensive military presence. They saw how important Hawaii is to the US ability to project power, so they've started to create their own Hawaiis. They tried testing the waters a few years ago by claiming the entire SCS as their Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and required all vessels and aircraft to request access to navigate through. The US immediately flew a couple bombers to assert the US claims of free navigation and to attempt to delegitimize those claims. Nearly a decade ago, the US Navy and USAF partnered together to come up with a counter strategy to China's A2AD, but that effort was halted a few years ago, presumably because there was no real way to get the military power needed to defend Taiwan in position without real risk of loss of life. I imagine at this point that any effort to defend Taiwan, which we are treaty-bound to do, would likely rely on long-range fighters and missiles launched from US submarines.