China’s most advanced amphibious assault vessel has been spotted in the western Pacific for the first time in a year – an appearance that analysts said was aimed at showing the country’s ability to break through US-led strategic containment.
Japan’s Joint Staff Office said on Monday that two Chinese naval vessels – a Type 075 Yushen-class amphibious assault ship and a Type 052D Luyang-class guided missile destroyer – were spotted about 120km (75 miles) northeast of the Miyako Islands in Okinawa prefecture on Saturday.
The two ships sailed southeast between the main islands of Miyako and Okinawa towards the Pacific Ocean, according to the office.
“The Ministry of Defence and the Self-Defence Forces carried out warning surveillance and information gathering by the Maritime Self-Defence Force’s 8th Escort Squadron ‘Kirisame’,” the office said.
It’s been more than a year since a Type 075 was last spotted in the western Pacific near the first island chain, a series of archipelagos running from the Japanese mainland through Taiwan and the Philippines off mainland Asia.
The deployments are intended to “assert Beijing’s freedom of navigation through these waters, and symbolically to demonstrate its ability to break past the supposed US-led strategic containment within this chain,” said Collin Koh, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.
“In recent years, more clearly, these missions are designed with plausible wartime scenarios in mind, chiefly related to countering an American military intervention from the eastern direction, namely, from Guam and Hawaii,” he added.
In July last year, the Guangxi, one of the three Type 075s in service, sailed from the East China Sea towards the Pacific Ocean through the Osumi Strait off Kagoshima prefecture in southwestern Japan. It was reportedly the first time that particular type of warship had crossed into Japanese waters.
In March that year, the vessel was put through its first far sea drills in the western Pacific as part of a 30-day live-fire exercise.
The Type 075 is the People’s Liberation Army’s latest and largest class of landing helicopter dock amphibious assault ship. It has a full-length flight deck that allows six helicopters to take off at one time and the capacity to carry 30 helicopters.
Analysts say the ships could play a key role in a potential military campaign against Taiwan, and they could also be converted into drone carriers.
Malcolm Davis, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, said the Type 075 was designed to allow aviation and amphibious forces to operate from sea to shore and support those forces while ashore.
“So in a Taiwan crisis, such a vessel could be employed to seize Taiwanese offshore territories, or support a direct invasion of the main island,” Davis said.
“The 075, and the larger 076, which is still under construction, would be essential for success in any Chinese operation against Taiwan. They will also be important in other disputes in the South China Sea, and also to undertake blue water deployments beyond the first island chain.”
Beijing regards Taiwan as part of its territory to be united with the mainland – by force if necessary. Most countries, including the United States, do not recognise Taiwan as independent, but Washington opposes any attempt to take control of the island by force and is committed to supplying weapons for its defence.
Song Zhongping, a former PLA instructor and commentator, said the sightings should not be considered alarming, adding that it was “natural” that training and patrols would be extended to various regions.
“China’s naval power is growing, and whether it’s aircraft carriers or amphibious assault ships, they’re not meant to stay close to home. They need to train in different areas. So, we should view this as a routine activity.
“This small-scale fleet, led by the Type 075 amphibious assault ship, needs to adapt to various environments. It’s not just patrolling near China’s coast but also in the South China Sea and waters near Japan.”
The deployment might also be primarily aimed at “giving the crew and the PLA Marine Corps valuable sea time” and experience, according to Koh.
“The presence of an amphibious assault ship is rare mostly because the naval campaign scenarios for counter-intervention would necessitate the typical surface combatants such as destroyers and frigates, as well as submarines,” Koh said.
Last week Japan spotted the Shandong – China’s first domestically built aircraft carrier – and three other naval vessels sailing from the Philippine Sea towards the South China Sea near Taiwa.
Koh said that in the event of conflict in the Taiwan Strait, having PLA naval assets, such as the Type 075, operating off the island’s east coast could complicate Beijing’s planning.
“Suppose it is meant to undertake amphibious assault landing operations, then the prerequisite operating environment has to be one that is secure for such a ship,” he said.
“Especially given that support from mainland Chinese bases this far to the east of the first island chain might not be forthcoming and there’s a real threat of the ship being cut off to the east of this chain, become isolated and then destroyed piecemeal.”
