China Deploys Five Icebreakers Near Alaska in Unprecedented Arctic Move
“The flotilla is led by China’s largest domestically-built icebreaker Xue Long 2. The Polar Class 3 vessel departed from Shanghai on July 5. It has since been operating in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas adjacent to Alaska and Russia. Its ultimate destination is not currently known. Last summer the vessel concluded its Arctic sailing with a port visit to Russia’s largest Arctic city Murmansk. Both the U.S. Coast Guard and Canadian military have shadowed Xue Long 2’s activities in recent weeks.”
“China’s newest icebreaking vessel Tan Suo San Hao entered into service in December 2024 for the Institute of Deep-sea Science and Engineering of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. With a Polar Class 4 designation the vessel is intended for year-round operation in thick first-year ice. It is China’s first comprehensive scientific research ship designed for global deep-sea exploration, including manned deep-sea submersibles. Tan Suo San Hao is currently operating in the northern Bering Sea and is about to enter Arctic waters.”
“Despite its short service history, Tan Suo San Hao has already raised questions if its mission is purely scientific. It recently made an appearance in the Philippines’ maritime zone. In May the vessel remained inside the Philippine’s exclusive economic zone prompting the country’s Coast Guard to dispatch one of its largest cutters, BRP Teresa Magbanua, on an intercept course.”
Source: GCaptain