Ian Ellis Profile picture
Jul 11, 2024 11 tweets 5 min read Read on X
Current situation:

- 4 Chinese warships crossed into the U.S. EEZ near Alaska
- PLA & Russian Navies conducting joint drills in WESTPAC
- Record-breaking military activity around Taiwan
- Surging ships into the South China Sea
- Shandong carrier group underway

A lot going on 🧵 Image
USCG: The crew of U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Kimball (WMSL 756) detected 3 Chinese vessels ~124 miles north of the Amchitka Pass in the Aleutian Islands, & an HC-130J aircrew from U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak detected an additional vessel ~84 miles north of the Amukta Pass.

All four of the People’s Republic of China vessels were transiting in international waters but still inside the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone, which extends 200 nautical miles from the U.S. shoreline.Image
The USCG did not confirm the composition of the Chinese surface action group, but it’s likely made up of ships I included below from Eastern Theater Command.

Note: In September 2021 & 2022, USCG cutters deployed in the Bering Sea also encountered PLA Navy surface action groups.
“The Chinese naval presence operated in accordance with international rules and norms,” said Rear Adm. Megan Dean, Seventeenth Coast Guard District commander. “We met presence with presence to ensure there were no disruptions to U.S. interests in the maritime environment around Alaska.”

The Chinese vessels responded to U.S. Coast Guard radio communication and their stated purpose was “freedom of navigation operations.”
Yesterday, China sent 56 PLA aircraft into Taiwan’s air defense zone (ADIZ) — the most ever tracked by the MND in a single day.
USNI: The Russian Navy and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy began their annual joint patrol on Thursday with Japan’s Joint Staff Office (JSO) reporting the combined flotilla is now in the Pacific Ocean after transiting Japan’s Osumi Strait from Thursday to Friday.

Corvette RFS Sovershenny (333) rendezvoused with PLAN destroyer CNS Yinchuan (175), frigate CNS Hengshui (572) and fleet oiler CNS Weishanhu (887) in the Korea Strait near Jeju Island to begin the fourth joint Russian-Chinese maritime patrol in the Asia-Pacific region, reads a Thursday statement from the Russian Pacific Fleet.

“The objectives of the joint patrol are to strengthen naval cooperation between Russia and China, maintain peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region, monitor the maritime area and protect maritime economic facilities of the Russian Federation and China.” reads the release. The Russians did not specify where the group would operate.
The PLA Navy Shandong carrier strike group has been operating in the Western Pacific since 9 July. The first WESTPAC deployment of 2024 coincides with the recent surge of military activity around Taiwan & in the South China Sea.
All four PLAN Type 055 destroyers/cruisers — China’s premier surface combatant — assigned to Southern Theater Command were recently deployed in the South China Sea.

The three PLAN Type 075 LHDs — their largest & most advanced amphibious warship — are underway in the SCS + ECS.
Yesterday, two Russian Steregushchiy-class Corvettes sailed southwest in the waters between Yonaguni Island (Okinawa Pref) & Iriomote Island — near Taiwan — & entered the Western Pacific.
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Taiwan said on Thursday that it was closely watching the Chinese military, which it said posed a rising threat to the region, after a flurry of warplanes passed near the island to join drills with China’s Shandong aircraft carrier in the Pacific. (Reuters)

The Shandong passed close to the Philippines on its way to the Pacific exercises, Taiwan’s defence minister said.

“The military has a detailed grasp of the activities in the seas and waters around the Taiwan Strait, including of the Chinese aircraft and ships,” ministry spokesperson Sun Li-fang said.

Speaking to military officers in Taipei, President Lai Ching-te said he will continue to strengthen the island’s defenses.

“The Chinese threat to regional stability continues to rise, and its grey zone intrusions into the Taiwan Strait and surrounding areas are also increasing day by day, which are a common challenge to global democracy.”
A curious alert just posted by Taiwan’s defense ministry:

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More from @ianellisjones

Apr 3
During exercise Strait Thunder-2025A, the Chinese PLA released several maps and visuals of Taiwan, some marked with target icons and depicting key locations burning and under attack.

Quick compilation (and more info below):
Here’s everything that happened (as it was happening):
Read 4 tweets
Apr 1
BREAKING: China launches joint military exercises around Taiwan, practicing a “blockade on key areas”

On 1 April, PLA Eastern Theater Command deployed Army, Navy, Air Force, & Rocket Forces to “close in on Taiwan from multiple directions.”

- Sea-air combat readiness patrols
- Joint seizure of comprehensive superiority
- Assault on maritime & ground targets
- Blockade on key areas & sea areas

“It is a stern warning & forceful deterrence against ‘Taiwan Independence’ separatist forces.”

The PLA released a theme poster called “Closing In: Sinister Moves of Taiwan Separatists Courting Disaster Upon Themselves.”
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Eastern Theater Command began conducting joint military exercises around Taiwan on Tuesday, 1 April 2025, according to an announcement by Senior Colonel Shi Yi, spokesperson for the theater command. Image
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Why is China doing this now and what are these exercises designed to do? @WarintheFuture explains:
Read 13 tweets
Mar 30
Six USAF B-2 Spirit stealth bombers — 1/3 of America’s fleet — forward deployed to Diego Garcia over the last week 🇺🇸

The Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group (CSG) continues strike operations against the Houthi. Carl Vinson CSG, en route to the Middle East, is 1-2 weeks out. Image
A comprehensive review of U.S. strike operations against the Iran-backed Houthi in Yemen, which began on 15 March and continued every day since:
A detailed thread by @TheIntelFrog tracking the deployments and air activity:
Read 8 tweets
Mar 28
🚨 Unclassified Report — Inside America’s 14-day ongoing strike campaign against the Houthi

At least 158 precision air and naval strikes targeting Houthi infrastructure & leadership.

My most detailed brief ever and an unprecedented look at U.S. strike operations in Yemen: Image
On Saturday, 15 March 2025, just before 11:44 EST, U.S. SECDEF confirmed with U.S. Central Command: “We are a go for mission launch,” initiating a series of precision strikes against 30+ Iranian-backed Houthi targets across Yemen, including a “target terrorist @ his known location.”
Strike operations, led by the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group (HSTCSG) in coordination with the U.S. Air Force, have continued every day since (now on Day 14).
Read 8 tweets
Mar 24
Notable developments in the Indo-Pacific last week:

- China conducted back-to-back joint combat patrols 24nm from Taiwan on the same day for the first time
- 59 PLA aircraft detected around Taiwan + 43 entered its ADIZ on Monday, largest single-day surge of 2025 + highest in 5 months
- Recent PLA military drills in the Taiwan Strait, Western Pacific, South China Sea, East China Sea, + Yellow/Bohai Sea
- New Shuiqiao landing barges carrying out docking trials with civil-military RO-RO ferries
- Elevated PLA drone activity, including WZ-10 + GJ-2

Taiwan recently wrapped up a week of “Rapid Response Exercises,” practicing tactical maneuvers, key asset protection, concealment, and cover operations to enhance readiness and response capabilities. MND said: “ROC Armed Forces closely monitor maritime and aerial activities, conducting joint operations to track and respond to PLA incursions.”

China’s foreign ministry stated: “China’s relevant military operation is necessary, lawful and legitimate in order to defend national sovereignty, security and territorial integrity. It’s a firm response to external forces who are hellbent on abetting and aiding ‘Taiwan independence,’ and a warning to ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces’ unconscionable acts... Those who attempt to use Taiwan to contain China will get burned for playing with fire.”

More info and sources below:Image
Review of Chinese PLA military activity 2025 year-to-date:
On 17 March, Taiwan detected 59 PLA aircraft around the island, and 43 crossed into its Air Defense ID Zone (ADIZ) — the largest single-day surge of 2025 and highest in 5 months.
Read 7 tweets
Mar 21
“...this newest logistics capability is further evidence of the PLA’s efforts to meet Chairman Xi Jinping’s reported mandate to have military capabilities necessary to conduct a large-scale invasion of Taiwan by 2027.” @tshugart3 @ChinaMaritime Image
“The new Shuiqiao LPUs offer the PLA a critical capability and fulfill a long-sought requirement to reliably deliver a large volume of second echelon forces into amphibious landing areas. In the context of other developments that include improvements to amphibious base infrastructure, the increased use of a diverse array of civilian vessels to support amphibious operations, and other PLA capability developments, the Shuiqiao LPUs are another example of the PLA significantly increasing capabilities to conduct a large-scale cross-strait operation—if they are ordered to do so—in coming years.”
May already be testing the new landing barges with a “civilian” PLA-associated roll-on, roll-off (RO-RO) ferry:
Read 4 tweets

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