China’s People Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) reportedly sent its amphibious assault ship to the straits between the islands of Japan on June 29, the first known instance of the warship being spotted in the Western Pacific.
Japan’s Ministry of Defense said that two PLAN ships—the Type 075 amphibious assault ship Guangxi and the Type 052 destroyer Baotou—were spotted sailing through the Osumi Strait and into the Western Pacific waters on June 29.
The military detected two more PLAN ships, the Type 054A frigate Anyang and the Type 902 support ship Chaohu, sailing through Japan’s Amami islands into the Western Pacific waters later that day….