The Space Review – In the fall of 2025, China commissioned its first indigenously-designed and built aircraft carrier, Fujian, named after a Chinese province. The commissioning ceremony was photographed from overhead by Western commercial reconnaissance satellites, but of course China proudly released their own photographs of the ceremony. The conventionally powered aircraft carrier is large and impressive. Although not quite as big as the US Navy’s Nimitz-class or Ford-class carriers, Fujian sports modern equipment, such as electromagnetic catapults and arresting gear.

But even as Fujian was formally entering service after an extended period of sea trials, another large carrier was taking shape in China. It too has been photographed by commercial reconnaissance satellites, and Western amateur analysts have been keeping tabs on the progress, trying to assess its size and capabilities. They soon saw indications that this ship, unlike its predecessors, will be nuclear-powered. Satellites are a primary source of information on China’s latest naval developments.

China Maritime Studies Institute – Today, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) owns the world’s largest fleet of blue-water marine scientific research vessels. While their operations are largely concentrated in the Western Pacific, an increasing number are reaching across the globe—from the Indian Ocean to the Arctic, and even the Western Hemisphere. 

Center for Maritime Strategy – While containerized weapons systems have been around for years, it is startling to see pictures of them combined in a way that a small cargo ship can easily be transitioned into a lethal naval vessel.  Such a transition can be temporary, allowing a return to commercial service in what is the ultimate example of a dual use vessel that results in superior overall cost economics.  That China completely outfitted such a vessel in a public area where pictures would emerge indicates a desire for this capability to be seen.

Business Insider – Thousands of Chinese fishing boats sailed into coordinated lines in the East China Sea twice in recent weeks. The vessels could be seen in both shipping data and satellite imagery. The anomalous behavior, experts said, is more likely aligned with activities related to China’s Maritime Militia.

National Interest – James Holmes writes that there is much we still do not know about the DF-27 missile—but it is worth examining the consequences for the US Navy if the Pentagon’s claims are taken at face value.

Asia Martime Transparency Initiative – China’s deployments of buoys in the Yellow Sea add yet another layer to its approach toward managing disputes with South Korea while furthering its own maritime interests. Like many of China’s maritime activities, the buoys accomplish several things simultaneously: they increase China’s monitoring and sensing capabilities in an important maritime area; they assert control over a less sensitive but still disputed portion of overlapping maritime claims; and, importantly in the Yellow Sea context, they test South Korean reactions to inform future deployments. 

Naval News – In this second instalment of this annual Naval News review for the Chinese Navy (PLAN) in 2025 we will cover relevant events for submarines, fleet auxiliaries, infrastructure modernisation and, finally, experimental efforts.

USNI News – Beijing’s newest variant of its J-20 fifth-generation fighter aircraft has the ability to conduct precision strikes on maritime targets, according to Chinese state media.

China Military Online – The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s hospital ship Silk Road Ark (Hull 867), which is on the Mission Harmony 2025, recently held open ship day activities at the Port of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. The vessel’s advanced medical equipment and distinctive traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) treatments were warmly received by the local residents.

War on the Rocks – Simultaneous disruption and progress, with a relentless Taiwan-focused capability development deadline.

That’s the overriding theme of the 25th edition of the Department of Defense’s China Military Power Report, released on Dec. 23, 2025. Despite extensive leadership purges and ongoing disciplinary investigations across China’s military and defense industry, the 2025 report concludes that China continues to make progress toward General Secretary Xi Jinping’s 2027 “Centennial Military Building Goal” and associated warfighting capabilities against Taiwan.

China Maritime Studies Institute – In July and August 2025, China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) employed a unique type of civilian deck cargo ship known as a Landing Craft Tank (LCT) to transport military vehicles directly to shore as part of an amphibious landing exercise. While civilian deck cargo ships of this type have been observed in previous PLA over-the-shore logistics exercises, they had only been used to transport vehicles and equipment from port-to-port—simulating the transport of forces into a captured port—not directly to an unimproved beachhead. If the PLA develops the ability to coordinate and employ significant numbers of civilian LCTs to transport forces directly onto Taiwan beaches, it could significantly improve its over the-shore assault capacities and logistics capabilities.

War on the Rocks – In any war over Taiwan, American commanders will face a problem that barely existed a decade ago: China can hide lethal military systems inside standard commercial shipping containers. These “containerized” missile launchers are modern renditions of an old U.S. Navy concept first marketed in the Russian Club-K and are now reportedly fielded in Chinese variants. They ride on the decks of merchant ships, blend into global commerce, and give Beijing the ability to forward-deploy precision weapons without visibly deploying a single warship.

Covert Shores – Putting weapons onto a merchant vessel is nothing new of course, and the concept of containerized missiles in standard ISO 40ft (12m) is very much in vogue. Iran, Israel, Turkey and Russia are among the countries to have already done this, or at least proposed it. Yet it remains novel and the latest Chinese vessel stands out in several important ways.

Naval News – As the year 2025 has come to its conclusion, Naval News provides the usual annual review on notable developments for the Chinese Navy. This first part will outline relevant additions to the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) surface fleet and also takes a brief look at operational trends. A second part to follow will look at submarines, auxiliaries and experimental efforts.

The War Zone – China has reconfigured its medium cargo ship-turned improvised warship into a drone carrier, but just how realistic is what we are seeing?

China Daily – The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Eastern Theater Command on Monday started joint drills involving its Army, Navy, Air Force, and Rocket Force troops in five areas surrounding Taiwan Island.

Codenamed “Justice Mission 2025,” the drills were conducted in the Taiwan Strait and waters to the north, southwest, southeast, and east of the island, to combat “Taiwan independence” separatist activities and external interference.

Military experts summarized three key takeaways of the drills.

1945 – Earlier today, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) launched its latest military exercise around Taiwan and nearby areas: “Justice Mission 2025” (正义使命-2025). Combat readiness patrols are already underway, with sea and air exclusion zones designated for live-fire exercises tomorrow. This makes it all the more urgent to consider the most important revelations from the Pentagon’s China Military Power Report, released on December 23, 2025.

The War Zone – The People’s Liberation Army Navy claims the ship-killing missile capable of hypersonic speeds has completed its “finalization test.”

The War Zone – A key part of the latest maneuvers is dissuading international “interference” in any future Chinese move against Taiwan.

Maritime Executive – Among the 2025 Pentagon report’s greatest revelations, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has fielded a conventional intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) able to range parts of America’s homeland. This makes China the first nation publicly assessed to have fielded an operational, conventionally-armed ICBM—the DF-27—albeit at the low end of the ICBM range band and with variant-dependent roles. America’s homeland is not a sanctuary from either PRC nuclear or conventional missiles.

The War Zone – China has packed a deck of a medium-sized cargo ship with 60 containerized vertical launch cells, radar, and close-in weapons.

US Department of Defense – The DOD’s Annual Report on the Chinese military

China Maritime Studies Institute – A recent unconfirmed rumor about the Chinese Navy developing a new general-purpose guidedmissile destroyer has stirred debate online. Many commenters argue that the Type 055 already offers exceptional capability across air defense, missile defense, anti-ship, anti-submarine, and general warfare roles, and is more than capable of meeting current mission needs. But because it’s expensive to build, it is not practical to produce in large numbers or to use for routine tasks, so it will likely remain a smaller part of the fleet. In contrast, the more affordable Type 052D class is limited by its size and displacement, which restricts how much it can be upgraded. As a result, it still cannot match the endurance or sustained firepower of the U.S. Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.

CSIS – The United States should flag this activity as another example of China’s grey zone tactics targeting Indo-Pacific partners. Washington and Seoul should consider releasing the coordinates of the Chinese structures for public use and analysis. Washington should support any South Korean claims of unilateral violations of the PMZ agreement by China. In sum, what the new National Security Strategy mandates for the South China Sea is applicable to U.S. and South Korean efforts to maintain freedom of navigation in the Yellow Sea.

Naval News – The vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean, over 5,000 nautical miles across, protects the West Coast of the United States against Chinese naval forces in the event of a war. The appearance of new extra-extra-large underwater drones (XXLUUVs) changes this, providing China with low-risk options to directly threaten West Coast ports.