February 24, 2025. The Chinese military alerted the world that it would be conducting a live-fire exercise in the Gulf of Tonkin and that ships should steer clear. The drill may be a response to the Vietnamese government’s establishing of a baseline in the Gulf.
“A baseline under the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, or UNCLOS, is the line that runs along the coast of a country, from which the extent of the territorial sea and other maritime zones is measured.
“In March 2024 China released its baseline in the northern part of the Gulf of Tonkin, deemed by analysts [to be] ‘excessive.’ Radio Free Asia was the first media outlet to report in April 2024 that Vietnam was considering its own baseline amid concern that China may seek to expand its maritime zones.”
February 20, 2025. Australia and New Zealand were monitoring “the ‘unusual’ presence of a group of Chinese naval vessels spotted in international waters off the Australian eastern coast, defence ministers of the two countries said. Three Chinese navy vessels—a frigate, a cruiser and a supply tanker—were spotted last week in waters off mainland Australia.”
The ships seemed to be following Australia’s eastern coastline as closely as possible while still remaining in international waters—like thugs casing your house from a distance.
February 18, 2025. A Chinese Navy helicopter flew within ten feet of a Philippine plane over the Scarborough Shoal. The Philippine aircraft was a Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) turboprop flying within the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines.
“About 90 minutes into the flight, a People’s Liberation Army Navy helicopter ‘performed dangerous flight maneuvers toward the BFAR aircraft,’ coast guard spokesman Jay Tarriela said…. ‘This reckless action posed a serious risk to the safety of the pilots and passengers….’ ”
February 17, 2025. China again ordered the Philippines to stay away from Philippine shoals. “Maritime tensions between China and the Philippines were in the spotlight at the Munich Security Conference, with former Chinese vice foreign minister Fu Ying calling the occupation of disputed features in the South China Sea ‘a red line.’ ” The disputed areas being declared off limits are the Second Thomas Shoal and the Sabina Shoal, near which Chinese ships often harass Philippine ships.
February 13, 2025. In the South China Sea, a Chinese fighter jet loosed flares that endangered an Australian surveillance plane. “A Chinese J-16 fighter released flares on Tuesday that passed within 30 meters (100 feet) of a P-8 Poseidon surveillance jet in daylight and in international air space, Defense Minister Richard Marles said on Thursday.” Marles said: “The J-16 was so close that there’s no way you could have been able to ensure that the flares did not hit the P-8.”
In other words, standard CCP whatcha-gonna-do-about-it conduct.
February 12, 2025. Japan made a diplomatic protest “after four Chinese coast guard ships were spotted entering Japanese territorial waters around the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea, calling the incident ‘unacceptable.’ ” Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi: “We will do our utmost in carrying our warning and surveillance activities and respond to China in a calm yet resolute manner.”
A few years earlier, on July 5, 2022, it had been reported that “Chinese operations near the Senkaku Islands are becoming more frequent as overall Chinese and Russian forces have been more active in the Western Pacific, Japanese officials said on Tuesday. Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi said Japanese forces will deal with any attempts by China to change the status quo of the Senkaku islands resolutely and calmly.”
China seems to ignore all protests and all assurances of resoluteness and calmness but perhaps will find it harder to ignore strengthening of military alliances in response to its endlessly repeated incursions. On February 24, 2025, Japan and the Philippines announced an agreement “to deepen defence ties…. The Japanese defence minister [Gen Nakatani] said after the meeting that he agreed with [the Philippine defense minister, Gilberto Teodoro] to strengthen operational cooperation, including joint and multinational defence trainings, port calls and information sharing.”
