US expected to step up surveillance as China continues to escalate naval exercises
- A series of US spy planes have been detected around China’s coast, including one that was spotted off the coast of Guangdong
- Another surveillance aircraft was seen near a no-entry zone in the East China Sea, where the latest drill began on Tuesday
China has announced another naval exercise as observers predicted that its increasing military capabilities would see an increase in US surveillance flights.
The maritime safety authorities in Zhejiang province announced a no-entry zone for civilian vessels in the East China Sea from Tuesday until Friday afternoon because of “military activities”.
The scale of China’s exercises along its coast in recent weeks has been unprecedented and has been matched by an increase in the number of US ships and aircraft keeping watch over the PLA’s activities.
Meanwhile, a Beijing-based think tank said satellite images showed a number of flights by US spy planes, including one that approached the coast of Guangdong province and another near the no-entry zone.
A US army Artemis CL-604 left Kadena air base in Okinawa on Monday and was later spotted near Guangdong province, according to a Twitter post by the South China Sea Strategic Probing Initiative.