CIMSEC – The article proceeds in three parts. It begins by analyzing the domestic sources of Chinese grand strategy that influence the PRC’s maritime policies and activities. The next section describes China’s maritime militia and fishing fleets, their strategic purposes, and their strengths and limitations. The final section addresses the challenges these actors pose to U.S. forces, with particular emphasis on the links between force protection and unintended escalation.

National Interest – The Chinese have been heavily investing in amphibious capabilities.

Naval News – China’ second Type 055 Destroyer (NATO reporting name: Renhai-class cruiser) was recently commissioned with the People’s Liberation Army Navy.

CNN – At some point between 2015 and today, China has assembled the world’s largest naval force. And now it’s working to make it formidable far from its shores.

Global Times – A newly commissioned, upgraded variation of the Type 052D destroyer recently made its public debut in a series of maritime exercises by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy, and analysts said more warships of this class are expected to join the service soon.

War on the Rocks – Taiwan is becoming the most dangerous flashpoint in the world. Events in and involving the small democracy could spark a war that draws in the United States, China, Japan, and possibly others. The administration of President Joe Biden should develop a more credible U.S. strategy to deter such a war.

Global Times – While Chinese people mourn the four martyrs killed in the June 2020 border conflict with Indian troops at Galwan Valley, Japanese media made a “wild and groundless” guess that a similar conflict is very likely to be provoked in the sea with Japan next time, referring to China’s Diaoyu Islands, where the two countries have had a long sovereignty dispute. 

South China Morning Post – There are stronger signs that China’s next aircraft carrier will be fitted with an advanced type of aircraft launch system, with official confirmation of a test flight of a carrier-based early warning plane.

Global Times – A Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy expedition group led by a Type 052D destroyer recently crossed the equator as it sailed further into the open sea, and such missions enable the PLA to get familiar with the high seas as China eyes to build a blue-water navy.

USNI News – The following is a translation of the National Institute for South China Sea Studies assessment of the recently released U.S. maritime strategy, Advantage at Sea: Prevailing with Integrated All-Domain Naval Power.

China Maritime Studies Institute – This report traces the origins and development of China’s current naval strategy: “Near Seas Defense and Far Seas Protection.” Near Seas Defense is a regional, defensive concept concerned with ensuring China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests. Its primary focus is preparing to fight and win informatized local wars within the first island chain. Far Seas Protection has both peacetime and wartime elements. In peacetime, the Chinese navy is expected to conduct a range of “non-war military operations” such as participating in international peacekeeping, providing humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, evacuating Chinese citizens from danger, and engaging in joint exercises and naval diplomacy. In wartime, the PLAN could be tasked with securing China’s use of strategic sea lanes and striking important nodes and high-value targets in the enemy’s strategic depth. Nears Seas Defense and Far Seas Protection is rooted in the ideas of Alfred Thayer Mahan and Mao Zedong.

The Diplomat – A look at the jet with many names – and its carrier-based future.

Global Times – The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy recently commissioned its last batch of Type 056A corvettes specialized in coastal defense, with the total number of the Type 056 series reaching 72, as analysts predicted on Wednesday that China could then shift focus to produce more larger warships as part of the country’s aim to build a blue-water navy.

Global Times – A Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy flotilla led by a Type 052D destroyer on Thursday started participating in a multinational exercise in Pakistan, a unique platform experts said that provides opportunities for Chinese and Russian navies to come together with their counterparts from the US and other Western countries.

Naval News – New intelligence confirms that China has ramped up submarine construction at a new site near the city of Wuhan. The Type-039A Yuan class submarines are replacing older types in the Chinese Navy’s (PLAN) order of battle. Together with new nuclear powered submarines they are helping to transform the PLAN into a much more modern and capable navy.

Global Times – The Gwadar Port is a commercial port that may receive port calls by ships of different navies, said Admiral M Amjad Khan Niazi, Chief of the Naval Staff of the Pakistan Navy, in a recent exclusive interview with the Global Times, in response to media reports claiming the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is mulling to build a naval base in Pakistan.

Global Times – Increasing attention on soldiers’ mental health is a normal management work of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China to thoroughly improve combat effectiveness as mental health is an important part of military management for all countries, Chinese observers said amid overseas media’s over-interpretation of a recent report on the mental condition of PLA submarine soldiers in the South China Sea.

Naval News – Open Source Intelligence reveals what appears to be the first publicly available image of China’s new nuclear powered submarine.

War Zone – The U.S. Navy is strongly hinting that it feels it is well on its way to mitigating the very real threats posed by anti-ship ballistic and cruise missiles.

USNI News – China can continue spending money on anti-ship ballistic missiles, but it might not be the capability needed to win if a conflict broke out between the U.S. and China, the admiral overseeing Navy intelligence said Wednesday.

South China Morning Post – China has risked stoking tensions with its neighbours after it passed a law that for the first time explicitly allows its coastguards to fire on foreign vessels and demolish structures built in disputed waters.

South China Morning Post – China has deployed a large number of launchers for its new advanced intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) to the country’s eastern and western areas for intensive training, as it and the United States continue their posturing over the disputed South China Sea.

USNI News – A major weakness “the largest navy in the world” has yet to solve is where Beijing will find skilled shipyard workers and modern facilities to maintain its fleet’s combat readiness far from its shores.

Naval News – Chinese government ships have been carrying out a systematic survey in the eastern Indian ocean. Data gathered may be particularly relevant to submarine warfare.

Global Times – China’s third aircraft carrier, expected to be very different from the previous two with much larger displacement and featuring electromagnetic catapults, could be launched in 2021 and enter naval service around 2025, media reports predicted based on recent photos of the ship’s construction site.