Japan and the Philippines have begun formal negotiations to delimit their maritime boundaries, a move that overlaps with Taiwan's exclusive economic zones and is viewed by Beijing as a challenge to its stance on Taiwan. Such bilateral agreements may lack legal weight for excluded claimants.
China's Liaoning carrier group and Anhui amphibious assault ship sailed into the Western Pacific for drills, signaling an accelerated build-up of "blue-water joint operational capability" and "area denial/anti-access" strategies. The exercises, timed near Taiwan's presidential inauguration anniversary and following high-level international meetings, aim to exert political pressure and demonstrate a shift from "near-sea defense" to "blue-water offense and defense."
China's Liaoning carrier group is conducting routine far-sea drills including flight training and live-fire exercises. Japan reported Chinese J-15 jets locked fire-control radar on Japanese F-15s near Okinawa.
A Chinese naval video titled Into The Deep, released to mark the 77th anniversary of the PLA Navy, has fueled speculation that China's next aircraft carrier will be nuclear-powered. The film featured officers named after China's three existing carriers – Liao Ning, Shan Dong, and Fu Jian – but a fourth character, 19-year-old recruit He Jian, prompted analyst speculation. The name He Jian combines characters sounding like 'nuclear' and 'ship', while the carrier is expected to have hull number 19.
PLA warships transited sensitive international waterways off southwestern Japan twice this week, a rare move seen as a clear warning to Tokyo over its recent actions relating to Taiwan. The transits marked the start and end of exercises in the western Pacific, outbound through the Yokoate Channel on Sunday and returning via the Yonaguni-Iriomote Waterway on Wednesday. This is the first publicly recorded instance of PLA warships operating in the waterway between Iriomote Island and Yonaguni, Japan's westernmost island just 110km from Taiwan.
