China's navy "drove away" a foreign warship that attempted to spy on its aircraft carrier during a long-distance training mission, Chinese state media reported on Tuesday.
Why It Matters
According to the Pentagon's latest assessment on Chinese military power, China has the world's largest navy by hull count, with a battle force of more than 370 ships and submarines in service, including two operational aircraft carriers—CNS Liaoning and CNS Shandong.
While the report did not reveal the location of the confrontation at sea, one of the Chinese warships involved in the incident was the Shandong, the country's second aircraft carrier. It is homeported on the Chinese southern island of Hainan, bordering the South China Sea.
What To Know
According to a Chinese sailor, who was assigned to the Type 055 destroyer CNS Yan'an, during a routine training, a formation led by the Shandong was approached by a foreign warship trying to conduct "illegal reconnaissance" and insert itself into the formation.
It was not immediately clear the foreign warship's identity and the date of the encounter. Newsweek has reached out to the Chinese Defense Ministry for comment by email.
"The Yan'an responded quickly and forced the foreign warship back to a safe distance of over 10 nautical miles [11 miles] through high-speed maneuvers," according to the report, which said the Yan'an responded to the foreign warship's "provocation" calmly and decisively.
"It [the foreign warship] wanted to get closer to the aircraft carrier at the time, and it used some little tricks. We kept adjusting our positions according to the maneuvers of the foreign warship and kept forcing it out," the Chinese sailor recalled the confrontation.
Last week, Chinese media reported that the Shandong is now capable of carrying out "round-the-clock operations" in complex weather conditions. The warship also took part in the country's first dual aircraft carrier operation with the Liaoning in late October.
In April 2021, Beijing lodged a diplomatic complaint over the conduct of a United States destroyer, which carried out "close-range reconnaissance" on the Liaoning and its task group as they held exercises in the wider Western Pacific Ocean and the South China Sea.
What People Are Saying
Chinese media reported: "This [confrontation with the foreign warship] scene not only reflects the powerful combat capability of the Yan'an but also demonstrates the ability of the Chinese navy to maintain maritime security."
The Pentagon's Chinese military power report read: "The PRC [People's Republic of China] has long challenged foreign military activities in its territorial seas and EEZ [Exclusive Economic Zone] in a manner inconsistent with customary international law in the UNCLOS [United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea]."
What Happens Next
The Chinese aircraft carrier fleet is likely to continue its long-distance training missions in the new year as it is expected to put the third "flattop" into service in the first half of 2025.
English (US) ·