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Despite all our high-tech spy satellites and radar gear, it was a sharp-eyed Coast Guard crew member who spotted them. Our cutter was on routine patrol in the Bering Sea when “several Chinese military ships” were observed. Technically, the interlopers were in international waters. They were also “within the U.S. exclusive economic zone” and that was meant to be annoying. It’s a clear poke at the Pentagon, with a message that they don’t expect Joe Biden to do anything about it. Really, there’s nothing he could do, even if he were fully functional. That’s because we’ve been pulling the exact same stunt on China, by sailing our warships through the Taiwan Straight.
Coast Guard tags along
A U.S. Coast Guard cutter was on routine patrol, Pentagon officials said on Wednesday, July 10, when they “came across several Chinese military ships in international waters” of the Bering Sea.
That’s not alarming all by itself, though it’s clearly intended as a message. The Pooh Bear’s little visit to Alaska is a response to our repeated and annoying transits of the Taiwan Straight.
The U.S. crew observed three vessels around 125 miles “north of the Amchitka Pass in the Aleutian Islands.” Once they were alerted to activity in the area, “a helicopter aircrew from Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak spotted a fourth ship approximately 84 miles north of the Amukta Pass.”
🇺🇸⚔️🇨🇳 USCGC Kimball (WMSL-756) w/ ground station rotary spotted 4x #PLAN vessels ~124mi N of Amchitka Pass in the Aleutian Islands, within the US EEZ but still in international waters. #USCG released this photo of one of the vessels.
src: https://t.co/jOUrRdmp7O | @docinkc pic.twitter.com/jrNxufg8Mz
— Faytuks Network (@FaytuksNetwork) July 11, 2024
All four ships bearing the flag of People’s Republic of China were “transiting in international waters but still inside the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone.” That stretches 200 nautical miles from the beach in all directions.
According to Rear Admiral Megan Dean, who’s Seventeenth Coast Guard District commander, they weren’t breaking any rules. “The Chinese naval presence operated in accordance with international rules and norms.” Even so, we kept a close eye on them.
“We met presence with presence to ensure there were no disruptions to U.S. interests in the maritime environment around Alaska.” It’s Xi Jinping’s way of asking Joe Biden how he likes it.
Not the first time
This little incident isn’t anywhere close to the first time it’s happened. The most recent was in September 2022 when a Chinese guided missile cruiser was spotted in the Bearing Sea.
The Coast Guard had spotted a few others off the Aleutians the year before. Not only do the Chinese do this every so often, we regularly do the exact same thing to them.
As Admiral Dean relates, we “routinely” conduct what the Pentagon likes to call “freedom of navigation operations in disputed waters in Asia that China claims as its own.” We take Navy ships on provocative little cruises “through waterways such as the South China Sea.”
🇨🇳 PLA Navy ships were spotted inside the US exclusive economic zone of the Bering Sea by a cutter on a routine patrol late last week.
US Coast Guard Cutter Kimball saw three ships about 124 miles north of the Amchitka Pass, a strait in the Aleutian Islands, a remote archipelago… pic.twitter.com/9MrJPFk4sN
— Byron Wan (@Byron_Wan) July 12, 2024
When we do “freedom of navigation” missions, it’s “in America’s national interest.” When the Chinese do it, our Coast Guard gets a little nervous.
At least our Coast Guard acts civilized. The Chinese version were acting like pirates recently, boarding Philippine resupply ships with axes and long knives. They did some serious damage to the rubber boats. The idea was to discourage them from dropping off groceries to the sailors they have stranded on St. Thomas Shoal.
They aren’t shipwrecked there, though their base of operations was. They’re desperately clinging to life on the isolated piece of rock so they can maintain their claim to the island. China is rather perturbed about that. They also recently sent their “monster” ship to the region. That’s another story.
