China's most advanced aircraft carrier, Fujian, traveled recently through the Taiwan Strait and into the South China Sea—two of the region's most sensitive bodies of water—during its sea trials, perhaps in preparation for its formal commissioning.
The Chinese fleet said on Friday that the trip was done to perform scientific surveys and training exercises. First made public in 2022, the Fujian is China's third aircraft carrier and started sea trials last year, though it has not yet officially entered into service.
"This cross-regional trial and training exercise for the Fujian is a routine arrangement in the carrier's construction process and is not directed at any specific target," it added.
This deployment follows a two-week concurrent drill by Japanese and U.S. Marines in Okinawa, utilizing the Typhon missile system among other high-end anti-ship systems. The exercises are set to run until September 25.
Japan's defence ministry stated late on Thursday that the Fujian had entered the East China Sea, traveling southwest towards Taiwan, with two Chinese missile destroyers in tow.
Taiwan's defence ministry confirmed that it has been keeping track of the situation through joint intelligence surveillance and has taken necessary steps.
A high-ranking Taiwan security official informed Reuters that the Fujian, which is named after the Chinese province across from Taiwan, was probably en route to the South China Sea in anticipation of its commission ceremony.
China's defence ministry did not respond to requests for comment.
In the last five years, China has dramatically increased its military presence off Taiwan, and has held war games and other exercises to defend its claims of sovereignty. Beijing's claims are denied by Taiwan, which insists only the people of the island should determine its future.
China defines the Taiwan Strait as part of its territorial sea, while Taiwan, the United States, and most of its allies see it as an international strait.
The South China Sea has also witnessed greater Chinese military presence. The bulk of the region is claimed by China, a claim disputed by countries such as the Philippines and Vietnam.
The domestically developed and constructed Fujian is larger and more technologically advanced than the Shandong—ordered in late 2019—and Liaoning, which China bought second-hand from Ukraine in 1998.
Fitted with a flat deck and electromagnetic catapults to launch planes, the Fujian will be able to handle a wider variety of aircraft, including early-warning planes and, ultimately, China's first carrier-capable stealth fighters.
Chieh Chung, an analyst at the Taipei Association of Strategic Foresight, said that when operational, the Fujian would enable China to keep three carrier strike groups in tactical locations within the Western Pacific.
He said that, unlike the other carriers, the Fujian would be capable of carrying fixed-wing early warning planes, giving its long-range "defence zone" a range over 600 km (373 miles).
Regional security analysts and military attaches are watching the trials of the Fujian closely, in part to assess how effectively China's navy can coordinate the full carrier operations with escort vessels and submarines.
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