China deploys warships across region in show of force

China is deploying a large number of naval and coast guard vessels across East Asian waters, at one point more than 100, in the largest maritime show of force to date, according to four sources and intelligence reports reviewed by Reuters.

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China is in the middle of what is traditionally a busy season for military exercises, though the People’s Liberation Army has not made any announcements of large-scale officially named drills.

Still, the rise in activity is happening as China and Japan are in a diplomatic crisis, after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said in November that a hypothetical Chinese attack on democratically ruled Taiwan could trigger a military response from Tokyo.

Beijing has also been angered by an announcement in November by Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te of an extra US$40 billion (S$51.8 billion) in defence spending to counter China, which views the island as its own territory.

The Chinese ships have massed in waters stretching from the southern part of the Yellow Sea through the East China Sea and down into the contested South China Sea, as well as into the Pacific, according to four security officials in the region.

Their accounts were corroborated by intelligence reports from a country in the region, which detailed the deployment. Reuters reviewed the reports on condition it did not name the country.

As at the morning of Dec 4, there were more than 90 Chinese ships operating in the region, coming down from more than 100 at one point earlier this week, the documents showed.