China deploys over 100 ships across East Asian waters: Report

Tensions in the Pacific have simmered in recent weeks as China, Taiwan, and Japan take on a more confrontational stance  

News Desk - The Cradle 

China has deployed a large concentration of naval and coast guard vessels across East Asian waters in what four regional officials and intelligence reports described as its “most extensive maritime display to date,” Reuters reported on 4 December.

The movements, which at one point involved more than 100 ships, stretch from the Yellow Sea to the contested South China Sea and into the Pacific. 

Intelligence reviewed by Reuters, from a regional government that was not named, corroborates the officials’ accounts and shows more than 90 vessels still active as of Thursday morning.

The surge comes during what is typically China’s busiest season for military drills, though the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has not announced any large-scale or named exercises. 

The rise in activity also follows a diplomatic clash with Japan after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi warned last month that a Chinese attack on Taiwan could draw a military response from Tokyo. 

Beijing was similarly irritated by Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te’s recent approval of an additional $40 billion in defense spending.

Taiwan’s National Security Bureau chief, Tsai Ming-yen, said four Chinese naval formations were operating in the western Pacific as of Wednesday and that Taipei is monitoring their movements closely. 

Asked whether China might initiate new Taiwan-focused maneuvers before the year’s end, he replied that Taipei must “anticipate the enemy as broadly as possible.” 

Taiwan’s Presidential Office separately said it maintains real-time awareness of the situation and can “ensure there are no concerns for national security.”

None of China’s defense or foreign ministries, nor Japan’s Self-Defense Forces, responded to Reuters’ questions.

One regional official said Beijing began sending out a higher-than-usual number of ships after 14 November, when it summoned Japan’s ambassador to protest Takaichi’s comments. 

“This goes far beyond China’s national defense needs and creates risks for all sides,” the official said, describing the deployment as “unprecedented.” 

According to this account, some vessels, supported by warplanes, conducted mock attacks on foreign ships and practiced access-denial operations designed to block outside intervention during a potential conflict.

However, two other sources told Reuters they do not currently view the deployment as significantly raising regional danger, characterizing it instead as a large but “apparently just routine” outing. The number of Chinese ships near Taiwan has not risen markedly, according to the first official and the intelligence reports.

China’s last named drill around Taiwan, “Strait Thunder-2025,” took place in April. Beijing did not formally acknowledge any exercise during a similarly large naval surge last December.

US President Donald Trump previously urged Takaichi to “dial down the volume” after her remarks on potential Japanese military action, telling her that easing tensions with Beijing would help him maintain a fragile trade truce.

The call followed his conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who reiterated that Taiwan’s future lies with China, a position Taipei rejects.