Nearly 9,000 Chinese fishing boats set off from southernmost Hainan province yesterday towards disputed waters in the South China Sea as a summer fishing break ended.
Analysts say the massive push is another step by Beijing to strengthen its sovereignty claims over the contested waters and is likely to further fuel tensions in the region.
'A new round of rows over fishing and territorial disputes will potentially be triggered in the near future, but Beijing is still in the most advantageous position,' said Fu Kuen-chen, a Taiwanese expert in maritime law.
The fleet embarked as the provincial government said it was trying to boost the fishing industry in the region, including around Sansha city on Woody Island, which is known as Yongxing Island in Chinese, the Hainan Daily reported.
The city was recently established to oversee two disputed island chains - the Spratlys and Paracels - and an undersea atoll.
Senior Colonel Li Jie, a researcher with the navy's military academy, said that the fleet's deployment was a move to further advance China's maritime territorial claims, following the beginning of regular military patrols in the South China Sea last month.
'China has now decided to change its previous passive stance and adopt proactive measures that include deeper involvement in exploiting the fishing resources in the South China Sea, which it believes is its own territory,' he said.