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Miami Herald
4 days ago
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Mapped: How China Staged Double Aircraft Carrier Show of Force in Pacific
Japan on Monday issued an update on China's operational aircraft carriers-the Liaoning and Shandong-deployed simultaneously to the Western Pacific. A Newsweek map based on the Japan Joint Staff report tracks the strike carrier groups' movements beyond the so-called First Island Chain, signaling Beijing's growing confidence in its blue-water naval capabilities. The First Island Chain-a string of archipelagos including U.S. treaty allies Japan and the Philippines as well as U.S.-aligned Taiwan-is considered crucial to Washington's hopes of containing Chinese forces in the event of a war. China continues to rapidly develop the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), the world's largest by ship count. Security analyst Bryce Barros told Newsweek the joint deployment beyond the First Island Chain is a "milestone" that signals growing confidence in Beijing's power projection capabilities in a region long dominated by the U.S. Newsweek reached out to the Chinese Foreign Ministry by email with a request for comment outside of office hours. The Shandong and Liaoning were both operating beyond the First Island Chain back on June 7, according to Tokyo, which has been closely monitoring the deployments. As of Monday, the Shandong-commissioned in 2019-and its support ships had sailed west through the strategic Luzon Strait between Taiwan and the Philippines and were heading south toward the South China Sea, where the carrier is homeported on China's Hainan Island. The Liaoning, a refurbished former Soviet-era warship commissioned in 2012, sailed even farther, briefly venturing beyond what the U.S. considers its next Pacific line of defense-the Second Island Chain-on June 7 and June 8. On Friday, the Liaoning transited the Miyako Strait-a key chokepoint in Japan's Ryukyu Islands-before entering the East China Sea that same day, apparently en route to its home port of Qingdao. The Liaoning's aircraft conducted at least 440 takeoffs and landings between June 8 and Thursday, according to estimates by the Japan Joint Staff. The Shandong carried out at least 420 takeoffs and landings between June 9 and Monday. During the Liaoning's operations in the Western Pacific, the carrier dispatched J-15 fighter jets to intercept four "foreign" fighters that were tracked approaching the carrier, in what the command room believed could be a simulated strike on the Chinese formation, state broadcaster China Central Television reported Sunday. The J-15s, armed with live missiles, executed tactical maneuvers and drove away the foreign aircraft, according to the report. The Chinese carrier groups' movements in recent days have coincided with a shift in Western naval power in the region, as the supercarrier USS Nimitz left the South China Sea for the Middle East amid escalating conflict between Israel and Iran. Meanwhile, the British carrier HMS Prince of Wales arrived in Singapore on Monday to begin its eight-month deployment in the Indo-Pacific region. Bryce Barros, a security fellow at the Washington, D.C.-based Truman National Security Project, told Newsweek: "China's dual carrier deployment beyond the First Island Chain marks a symbolic and operational milestone, signaling growing confidence in projecting power toward the Second Island Chain. "Still, [American aircraft carrier] USS George Washington, HMS Prince of Wales, and [amphibious assault ships] USS America and USS Tripoli remain in the region. The U.S. must reassure partners that it takes PLAN advances seriously-ensuring presence, posture, and partnership remain strong despite global distractions." China's objectives in deploying both aircraft carriers remain unclear. It is also uncertain whether U.S. and allied navies will respond in the Western Pacific amid Washington's deepening involvement in the Middle East conflict, sparked earlier this month by Israeli airstrikes against Iranian military and nuclear targets. Related Articles Why Congress Must Pass the AI Regulation Moratorium on States | OpinionThe U.S. Patent Office Should Not Let Itself Be Used for Litigation Gamesmanship | OpinionRepublicans and Democrats Agreed on Iran's Nuclear Weapons ThreatFootage Shows China Firing Water Cannon at US Ally Near Disputed Territory 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
New Straits Times
20-06-2025
- Politics
- New Straits Times
China criticises UK navy ship transit of Taiwan Strait
BEIJING: China condemned Britain on Friday for sending a navy ship through the Taiwan Strait, saying the move had "undermined peace and stability" in the sensitive waterway. Beijing views Taiwan as part of its territory and claims jurisdiction over the body of water that separates the self-ruled island from the Chinese mainland. Taiwan's foreign ministry said on Thursday that the British Royal Navy patrol vessel HMS Spey sailed through the strait the day before, as part of a freedom of navigation exercise. China's navy hit back on Friday, accusing London of "publicly hyping up" the move. Beijing "organised troops to track and warn (the ship) throughout the entire journey, and effectively dealt with it," Liu Runke, a spokesman for the People's Liberation Army Navy's Eastern Theatre Command, said in an online statement. He said British statements on the transit had "distorted legal principles and confused the public." "Its actions deliberately disrupted the situation and undermined peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait," Liu said. China has repeatedly refused to rule out using force to seize control of democratic Taiwan. The HMS Spey was the first British navy ship to sail through the strait since the HMS Richmond, a frigate deployed with Britain's aircraft carrier strike group, in 2021. Taiwan's defence ministry said Friday it had detected 50 Chinese military aircraft around the island. "China respects the right of all countries to navigate the waters of the Taiwan Strait in accordance with the law," Beijing's foreign ministry said on Friday. "But we resolutely oppose any country conducting provocations and threatening Chinese sovereignty and security under the pretext of freedom of navigation," spokesman Guo Jiakun said at a regular news briefing. Beijing has ramped up deployment of fighter jets and naval vessels around Taiwan in recent years to press its sovereignty claim, which Taipei rejects.
GMA Network
17-06-2025
- Politics
- GMA Network
No Chinese patrols during PH-Japan maritime activity —PH Navy
The Philippine Navy on Tuesday said that the recent Bilateral Maritime Cooperative Activity (BMCA) between Philippines and Japan had been lawfully conducted with no alleged Chinese coordinated air and sea patrols. That's according to Philippine Navy Spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, as he denied a report from South China Morning that Beijing conducted patrols during the two countries' BMCA. 'What was monitored by the Philippine Navy is the continued illegal presence of the [People's Liberation Army Navy (PLA-N)] and [Chinese Coast Guard (CCG)] in our maritime zones, specifically in Bajo de Masinloc, Sabina Shoal, Pag-asa Island, and Ayungin Shoal," Trinidad said in a statement. Based on a monitoring report by the Philippine Navy, there were at least 12 Chinese vessels observed within the disputed waters from June 14 to 15, 2025. "This report is another attempt on misinformation, disinformation and malinformation to shape the domestic and international narrative favorable to the illegal claims in our maritime zones of the Communist Party of China," Trinidad added. The Navy reported that despite Chinese presence, the BMCA was successful and was conducted professionally and safely within the Philippines' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). 'This maritime activity was more than a demonstration of maritime capability; it was a clear expression of our enduring commitment to peace, regional stability, and a rules-based international order in the Indo-Pacific,' Trinidad added. —Jiselle Anne Casucian/ VAL, GMA Integrated News
Atlantic
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Atlantic
A Parade of Ignorance
Benito Mussolini took a keen interest in Roman archaeology; that did not make Roman archaeology a bad thing. President Donald Trump has ordered a parade in honor of the 250th birthday of the United States Army, which does not make the parade a bad thing. But how the parade is being handled, together with the administration's use of the Army in improper ways, is disturbing. The United States Army deserves a celebration, as do the other armed services during their upcoming birthdays. Tens of millions of Americans have passed through the Army's ranks, and something close to a million have died in the line of duty, while many more were wounded or taken prisoner, or suffered extraordinary hardships. We owe them a lot. The administration, however, is orchestrating a parade not to honor service, but to celebrate power. Tanks and infantry fighting vehicles will tear up the capital's streets as helicopters thrash overhead. Tough-guy stuff, in other words, designed to show the world that we are, in the much-overused word of the secretary of defense, lethal. There are ironies here. The ironmongery on display is old technology, albeit continually updated and improved. The Abrams tank was designed in the 1970s and first entered service in 1980, and the Bradley fighting vehicle came online a year later. The wheeled Stryker fighting vehicle is a relative youngster, having entered service in 2001. The first Black Hawk transport helicopter entered service in 1979, and the Apache attack helicopter in 1986. Some really modern military hardware might include a flock of hundreds of drones, but that doesn't provide the same kind of visual for a civilian population that has seen the aerial displays at Disney World. Inadvertently, what is being put on display is the Army's repeated modernization failures as much as its successes. Nor is this hardware relevant to the strategic choices the Trump administration has avowed, leaving Europe and the Middle East and focusing on the Indo-Pacific. Tanks will not persuade China to keep the People's Liberation Army Navy behind the first island chain. This is about preening for the American public and indulging a kind of juvenile fascination with big, noisy armored vehicles. Trump and his appointees do not understand this country's real strengths. If they did, they would not attempt to destroy the great research universities that have done so much to create the scientific base that has been indispensable to America's military power. They do not know, because they are exceptionally ill-informed, that it was the mobilization of scientific personnel from America's universities by Vannevar Bush (of MIT) and James B. Conant (president of Harvard) that helped give the United States its technological edge during World War II. If the draft-evading president and disgruntled former National Guard major running the Department of Defense better understood the American military, they would know that by sending National Guardsmen (and now Marines) to deal with riots when neither the governor of the state nor the mayor of the city concerned want them, they are courting danger. They would not promise, as Trump has, the use of 'heavy force' against protesters. They would not, in other words, anticipate, almost with glee, the prospect of Americans in uniform shooting their fellow citizens. For that matter, they would know that deploying thousands of military personnel to the southern border disrupts training for war, which they supposedly value highly. The Army reportedly wanted this parade. It is, of all the services, the one that is keenest to be identified with the American people, the most wounded when it feels rejected by or distanced from them. The other services have always preferred volunteers in wartime and usually get them; the Army is, ultimately, the most representative service. One can understand the desire to observe this milestone, particularly after the debilitating defeat the United States suffered in Afghanistan and its equivocal success in Iraq. In some ways, the Army is making a bid for reassurance here. No matter: A parade on this anniversary should remind the American people of how the Army won our independence, preserved our Union, crushed a rebellion fought in the name of slavery, and liberated large parts of Europe and Asia. A worthy parade would include storied units whose heritage goes back to the founding of the country. Soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Regiment, the 'Old Guard,' established in 1784, should march by, as might other, even older, units such as the 101st Field Artillery Regiment of the Massachusetts Army National Guard, the 'Boston Light Artillery,' founded in 1636. Famous and familiar units—the 1st Division (the 'Big Red One') and the 101st Division (the 'Screaming Eagles')—will no doubt be represented. But so, too, should units that capture, yes, the diversity of the American military. Soldiers representing the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, which was composed of free Black Americans, and some of the units of U.S. Colored Troops, who made up about a fifth of the Union Army by the end of the Civil War, should be there. Abraham Lincoln's words, written in 1863, might be recalled: 'And then, there will be some black men who can remember that, with silent tongue, and clenched teeth, and steady eye, and well-poised bayonet, they have helped mankind on to this great consummation; while, I fear, there will be some white ones, unable to forget that, with malignant heart, and deceitful speech, they have strove to hinder it.' (President Trump might reflect on those words before renaming American bases for secessionist officers who betrayed their allegiance to the Constitution.) Kori Schake: Sometimes a parade is just a parade The Oneida and Stockbridge Indians who served alongside fellow Americans fighting for independence from Britain should be represented, among the many Native Americans from tribes across the country who proudly fought for the United States. And the extraordinary 442nd Regimental Combat Team, which was composed of second-generation Japanese Americans, many of whose parents were then interned in camps in the Southwest, and yet which became one of the most highly decorated units in the Army during the Second World War. The Army, throughout its history, has been the great equalizer. As the sociologist Charles Moskos once pointed out, in the 1950s and '60s it was one of the few institutions in which Black men were routinely giving orders to white ones. The experience of common military service was humbling for some, elevating for others, and helped forge a common identity. We should honor that, as we honor the work of liberation that has so often been part of the Army's mission. The Army has much to celebrate—its history, its values, its accomplishments. Fetishizing its killing instruments, shutting down the capital's streets for tanks, and threatening protesters with violence is as wrong as it is deeply ignorant. Worse, it will undermine the tribute a grateful American public should properly pay to those who have, over the centuries, defended our freedom with blood and sweat and brought that same inestimable gift to many others around the world.
Newsweek
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
China Releases Photos of Aircraft Carriers Beyond First Island Chain
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. China released photos showing its aircraft carriers conducting "training exercises" in the western Pacific beyond the first island chain, which is intended to keep its navy in check. "The training complies with relevant international law and practice, and is not targeted at specific countries or entity," a Chinese navy spokesperson said in a statement on Tuesday. Why It Matters The first island chain—comprising Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines—is one of three Pacific island defense lines established by the United States, utilizing its own territories as well as those of its allies and partners, with the goal of restricting China's naval activities. The Chinese navy, the largest in the world by hull count, deployed its aircraft carriers—CNS Liaoning and CNS Shandong—to the eastern side of the first island chain simultaneously for the first time over the weekend, challenging the U.S.'s naval dominance in the region. Meanwhile, the Liaoning became China's first aircraft carrier to be spotted operating in waters east of the second island chain, which stretches from Japan to New Guinea—north of Australia—via Guam, the westernmost U.S. territory that serves as a military hub. What To Know Senior Captain Wang Xuemeng, a spokesperson for the Chinese navy, confirmed in the statement that both the Liaoning and the Shandong had been deployed to the western Pacific Ocean in recent days to test their capabilities in "far-sea defense and joint operations." The spokesperson said the dual aircraft carrier deployment was a "routine arrangement included in the annual training plan," which sought to improve the ability of the Chinese navy—officially known as the People's Liberation Army Navy—to fulfill its missions. Chinese aircraft carriers CNS Liaoning, top, and CNS Shandong, bottom, conducting flight operations with J-15 fighter jets in the western Pacific Ocean in early June. Chinese aircraft carriers CNS Liaoning, top, and CNS Shandong, bottom, conducting flight operations with J-15 fighter jets in the western Pacific Ocean in early June. Chinese military Official photos show both Chinese aircraft carriers launching J-15 fighter jets at an undisclosed location in the western Pacific Ocean during both day and night. A supply ship attached to one of the aircraft carriers was seen providing supplies to a destroyer. However, it remains unclear whether the Liaoning and the Shandong were operating in the same vicinity. They were last tracked underway on the eastern and western sides of the second island chain, respectively, according to a map published by Newsweek. Japan, a U.S. ally that tracks and monitors the Chinese navy, has made a "proper request" to China through diplomatic channels regarding the activities of the Chinese aircraft carriers, Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said at a news conference on Tuesday. The Chinese supply ship CNS Hulunhu providing supplies to the destroyer CNS Wuxi in the western Pacific Ocean in early June. The Chinese supply ship CNS Hulunhu providing supplies to the destroyer CNS Wuxi in the western Pacific Ocean in early June. Chinese military "China intends to improve the operational capability of its two aircraft carriers and its ability to conduct operations in distant seas and airspace," the minister said, adding that Japan had both the will and the ability to deter unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force. What People Are Saying Lin Jian, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said on Tuesday: "Let me reiterate that Chinese naval vessels' activities in those waters are fully consistent with international law and international practices. Our national defense policy is defensive in nature. We hope Japan will view those activities objectively and rationally." Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said on Tuesday: "In any case, the Ministry of Defense and the Self-Defense Forces will continue to closely monitor the movements of the Chinese Navy vessels, including these two aircraft carriers, and will take all possible measures to conduct surveillance activities." What Happens Next China's dual aircraft carrier deployment comes as two U.S. aircraft carriers—USS Nimitz and USS George Washington—are underway in separate areas of the western Pacific Ocean.
