China conducts military drills off east coast in Yellow Sea
- No-go zone declared from Friday to Tuesday as navy carries out what maritime safety authority earlier described as ‘major exercise’
- Notice jointly issued by PLA unit which operates small warships equipped with anti-ship missiles
A no-go zone has been declared from Friday to Tuesday in an area spanning from southeast of Rongcheng in Shandong province down to waters near Lianyungang in Jiangsu.
The notice was issued two days after the maritime authority had said a “major military exercise” would be held in the same location and over the same period. That notice was removed from the authority’s website hours after being posted, without explanation.
Thursday’s notice did not say what the drills would involve but it was jointly issued by the PLA’s Unit 91208, which operates a fleet of missile boats in the Northern Theatre Command.
The small, fast warships are equipped with anti-ship missiles and can be used in a swarm to attack targets at sea. The Chinese navy’s missile boats are each armed with eight subsonic anti-ship missiles as well as a rapid-fire Gatling gun for aerial targets and firepower support.