Xuchang (536) is a Type 054A frigate of the People's Liberation Army Navy.

The autonomous Type 730 provides improved reaction time against close-in threats.

[3][4][5] In 2019, Xuchang took part in anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden.

On June 3, 2019, the ship had a four-day stopover in Sydney Harbour, Australia on the return trip as part of a three-ship taskforce along with the Type 071 amphibious transport dock Kunlun Shan and the Type 903 replenishment ship Luomahu.

[6][7][8] According to then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison, the naval visit was invited by the Australian Government, but the neither the New South Wales government nor the Australian public were informed ahead of the taskforce's arrival, which triggered a media frenzy among the conservative Australian media and politicians on the backdrop of rising geopolitical tension in Sino-Australian relations.