– US Naval War College Review – Overall, a confluence of economic, military, and geopolitical factors suggests that the Senkaku/Diaoyu issue will increasingly define and shape the geopolitical environment in East Asia—to include the possibility of major-power war—for the foreseeable future.

– Wall Street Journal – In a move with significant implications for territorial disputes in the East and South China Seas, the Chinese government announced on Sunday that it plans to centralize bureaucratic control over its maritime law enforcement agencies by consolidating them under the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) and its parent ministry, the Ministry of Land and Natural Resources.

– BBC – China’s navy has taken delivery of the first of a new kind of stealth frigate, as tension continues with neighbouring countries over maritime borders.

– Xinhua – The 14th naval squad, sent by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy, departed Saturday from China to the Gulf of Aden and Somali waters for escort missions. The fleet comprises three ships — the missile destroyer Harbin, the frigate Mianyang and the supply ship Weishanhu — carrying two helicopters and a 730-strong troop.

– Time – If Chinese warships escalate from locking-on radars to actually pulling the trigger in the East China Sea, they’ll have lots to shoot at – and it won’t be just the Japanese.

– BBC – A Chinese vessel has locked its weapon-targeting radar on a Japanese ship, Tokyo says, amid mounting tensions over a territorial row.

– Chinese Navy – The drums of war – Armed clashes over trivial specks in the East China Sea loom closer.

– The Economist – The risks of a clash between China and Japan are rising—and the consequences could be calamitous.

– Wired – The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy now has an aircraft carrier, new jet fighters to fly off the flattop and even new submarines and guided-missile destroyers able to protect the refurbished Soviet carrier. And with the successful first sea trials of two new, 590-foot-long fleet oilers — tanker ships designed to keep other vessels fueled, or “replenished,” while sailing long distance — the PLAN could soon be able to deploy all this new hardware beyond coastal waters.

– Flight – China is upset at being called out for reverse engineering the Shenyang J-15 carrier-based fighter from the Russian Sukhoi Su-33 Flanker. The Chinese argue in the People’s Daily–a state media organization–that the J-15 is more advanced than the Su-33.

– Wall Street Journal – Two months after China’s first aircraft carrier Liaoning was commissioned, and a year and a half after it began sea trials, an Chinese J-15 fighter became the first known fixed wing aircraft to take off from and land on it…Once again, China has exceeded the expectations of many foreign observers regarding timelines for military capabilities development, though the tremendous publicity the event has received could limit the country’s ability to move with such speed in developing its aircraft carrier going forward.

– BBC – A Chinese-made fighter jet lands on Beijing’s first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, officials say, bolstering China’s military capacity in territorial disputes.

– Reuters – China appears to be within two years of deploying submarine-launched nuclear weapons, adding a new leg to its nuclear arsenal that should lead to arms-reduction talks, a draft report by a congressionally mandated U.S. commission says.

– The Diplomat – China is building a two-layered navy with a high-end Near Seas component and a limited, low-end capability beyond. It is not poised to speed across the Pacific to threaten America.

– BBC – China is conducting naval exercises in the East China Sea, state media report, amid heightened tensions with Japan over islands both claim.

– Wall Street Journal – Less than a month after China officially commissioned the Liaoning, its first aircraft carrier, photos appearing to show aircraft operating over the carrier have raised a host of questions, including how long it might take for China to make the carrier fully operational.

– The Diplomat – An excellent overview of the forms such a conflict could take. This is Part 5 of a 5 part series. Use the links at the top of the page to read all 5 parts.

– The Diplomat – China’s development and use of naval and non-naval, non-military sea power has become a cause for concern – one that could alter the regional balance.

– The Diplomat – It’s worth spending a bit of time to discuss how the PRC’s anti-access capabilities have come together. Much recent work has concerned the DF-21A “carrier killer” ballistic missile, but that capability represents only a small part of the system of anti-access systems that China operates.

– Foreign Policy – China’s about to find out how hard it is to run an aircraft carrier.

– BBC – China’s first aircraft carrier has entered into service, the Defence Ministry says.

– Reuters – The U.S. and Chinese navies have carried out drills to combat pirates off the Horn of Africa in a rare joint military exercise between the powerful nations.

– Air Force – Mistrust, international military buildups, and competing territorial claims bring plenty of tension to a vital waterway that China considers an internal sea.

– BBC – Two Chinese patrol ships have been sent to islands disputed with Japan, which has sealed a deal to purchase the territory, Chinese state media say.

– The Diplomat – China’s navy appears on the verge of creating a new class of warship. It could eventually alter the balance of naval power in the region.