China sends its most advanced carrier into disputed waters near Korea
“China’s newest and most advanced aircraft carrier has conducted fighter jet takeoff and landing drills in the Provisional Measures Zone (PMZ) of the West Sea (Yellow Sea) — a disputed body of water between China and the Korean Peninsula — for the first time, multiple South Korean government sources confirmed to The Chosun Ilbo.”
“The exercises, carried out by the Fujian, China’s third and largest carrier, mark a historic first: no Chinese aircraft carrier has previously conducted this kind of training inside the PMZ. The move comes as Beijing continues to install maritime structures and buoys in the area — actions Seoul views as part of a gradual push to assert de facto control over the region.”
“The Fujian’s operations coincided with a separate deployment of the Liaoning, China’s first aircraft carrier, which conducted more than 120 aircraft sorties near Taiwan’s southeastern waters in late May, according to Taiwanese and Japanese authorities. Japan’s Defense Ministry reported the Liaoning later sailed through waters between Okinawa and Miyako Island into the Pacific, where further operations were observed.”
https://www.chosun.com/english/national-en/2025/06/06/JL4QEZSHPBD7VK2OWMO5IEH2GE/