https://www.scmp.com/rss/523981/feed The latest news and top stories on Eastern Theatre Command. A prominent Nanjing based military command, the Eastern Theatre Command is one of five under the People’s Liberation Army. Its primary mission involves maintaining security in the East China Sea and conducting operations concerning Taiwan and disputed territories including the Senkaku Islands. Responsible for East China and the Taiwan Strait, its main activities include joint military exercises and combat readiness drills. The command... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Yuanyue Dang Yuanyue Dang China’s next-generation “drone-carrier” amphibious assault ship is en route to the South China Sea for critical sea trials, the military announced on Tuesday, in the same waters where the US, the Philippines and Japan are conducting large-scale joint military exercises and the aircraft carrier Liaoning is apparently sailing to. “The Sichuan, our country’s first Type 076 amphibious assault ship, has set sail from Shanghai for relevant waters in the South China Sea to carry out scientific research... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3350932/chinas-new-type-076-drone-carrier-take-part-south-china-sea-training-drills?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3350932/chinas-new-type-076-drone-carrier-take-part-south-china-sea-training-drills?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Apr 2026 21:09:29 +0000 Liu Zhen Liu Zhen With the countdown on in earnest to the PLA’s centenary next year, President Xi Jinping has urged the corruption-battered top ranks of the military to refine their ideological purity to give the armed forces a “brand new look”. Xi told senior People’s Liberation Army officers on Wednesday to maintain resolute political loyalty to the Communist Party and said that any thought or action driven by self-interest or corruption was “fundamentally against the party’s nature and purpose”, state media... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3349470/xi-senior-officers-must-stay-pure-meet-chinese-militarys-centenary-goal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3349470/xi-senior-officers-must-stay-pure-meet-chinese-militarys-centenary-goal?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 05:02:07 +0000 Liu Zhen Liu Zhen The People’s Liberation Army division responsible for the East China Sea and the Taiwan Strait carried out a decontamination exercise amid targeting of Iranian nuclear facilities by the United States and Israel. A recent training exercise at an Eastern Theatre Command naval base included an emergency response to a simulated nuclear attack, according to a report on Tuesday by state broadcaster CCTV, which did not specify the time or location of the drill. The exercise focused on rapid detection... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3349361/pla-troops-facing-taiwan-strait-and-japan-simulate-response-nuclear-attack?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3349361/pla-troops-facing-taiwan-strait-and-japan-simulate-response-nuclear-attack?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Apr 2026 11:00:08 +0000 Liu Zhen Liu Zhen A pair of advanced destroyers kicked off an intensive and wide-ranging training exercise soon after they were assigned to the People’s Liberation Army division that oversees Taiwan and the East China Sea. The newly commissioned 12,000-tonne guided-missile destroyers, the Dongguan and Anqing, took part in their first live-fire training in mid-March, simulating high-intensity combat missions, the official PLA Daily reported on Sunday. The Type 055 “super destroyers” are the first of their kind in... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3347726/new-type-055-destroyers-pla-east-china-fleet-tested-first-live-fire-drill?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3347726/new-type-055-destroyers-pla-east-china-fleet-tested-first-live-fire-drill?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Mar 2026 10:12:05 +0000 William Zheng William Zheng A video released by the People’s Liberation Army during a military drill this week has sparked debate about whether Taiwan failed to detect a J-20 stealth fighter and how close the aircraft might have come to a key military airport on the island. The video was released by the PLA’s Eastern Theatre Command on Tuesday – the second day of the “Justice Mission 2025” joint military exercises around Taiwan. The footage shows a PLA J-20 flying near an unidentified landscape that some observers say... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3338548/did-pla-stealth-fighter-approach-key-taiwan-airbase-new-video-sparks-debate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3338548/did-pla-stealth-fighter-approach-key-taiwan-airbase-new-video-sparks-debate?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Jan 2026 11:31:16 +0000 Liu Zhen Liu Zhen An aerial video released by Beijing during this week’s military exercise and featuring the Taipei 101 landmark in Taiwan has ignited a debate on how close PLA drones came to the heart of Taipei. The black-and-white drone footage, released by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Eastern Theatre Command on Monday, shows an ascending passenger plane flying past Taipei 101, the city’s tallest skyscraper. A still image showing a panoramic view of the tower and surrounding landscape, including the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3338399/just-how-close-did-pla-drone-come-heart-taipei-during-drill?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3338399/just-how-close-did-pla-drone-come-heart-taipei-during-drill?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 01 Jan 2026 22:00:38 +0000 William Zheng William Zheng The mainland Chinese military’s Eastern Theatre Command, the corruption-hit division that oversees Taiwan, appears to be headed by two recent additions to the command. The appointments will enable the command to maintain continuity of operations despite the corruption cases among its leadership, according to an analyst. PLA Air Force Lieutenant General Yang Zhibin, 62, and Lieutenant General Zhang Jichun, 57, stood alongside other senior officials at mainland China’s annual commemoration of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3336778/pla-division-overseeing-taiwan-sees-newcomers-charge?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3336778/pla-division-overseeing-taiwan-sees-newcomers-charge?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Dec 2025 09:49:35 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma Politburo member Wang Yi has become the most senior Chinese official to wade into the war of words over the new Japanese prime minister’s comments on the Taiwan Strait, saying her remarks “crossed a red line”. Wang, who is China’s foreign minister, said China must “resolutely respond” to the comments to safeguard the country’s sovereignty and defend its post-war achievements. “It is shocking that Japan’s current leader has publicly sent the wrong signal of attempting military intervention in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3333854/blood-and-lives-chinese-foreign-minister-wang-yi-wades-war-words-japan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3333854/blood-and-lives-chinese-foreign-minister-wang-yi-wades-war-words-japan?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 23 Nov 2025 11:06:55 +0000 Amber Wang Amber Wang Beijing has staged a rare high-profile display of its bombers during drills near Taiwan – a clear signal to potential external parties – ahead of an expected summit between President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in South Korea this week. Several H-6K bombers – one of the most advanced variants of the People’s Liberation Army’s H-6 family – recently carried out simulated confrontation drills over air and sea areas surrounding Taiwan, according to a programme broadcast by state-run... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3330748/beijing-played-its-h-6k-bombers-drill-near-taiwan-who-was-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3330748/beijing-played-its-h-6k-bombers-drill-near-taiwan-who-was-it?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Oct 2025 10:00:14 +0000 Liu Zhen Liu Zhen A People’s Liberation Army landing barge believed to be intended specifically for military operations near Taiwan has been spotted on the move, according to a video posted on Chinese social media. The video, which surfaced on the internet on Monday, shows the self-elevating jack-up barge sailing in an unidentified body of water with its road ramp and signature eight struts raised. While the date and location of the video are unknown, mountains and other vessels are visible in the background,... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3329230/pla-navys-taiwan-focused-landing-barge-spotted-sea-destination-unknown?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3329230/pla-navys-taiwan-focused-landing-barge-spotted-sea-destination-unknown?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Oct 2025 12:00:13 +0000 Enoch Wong Enoch Wong The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has stepped up messaging about its round-the-clock military drills conducted in an apparent response to Taiwan’s annual Han Kuang exercise. For four consecutive days this week, the PLA’s Eastern Theatre Command – the division responsible for overseeing the Taiwan Strait and the East China Sea – has given daily updates on cross-service military drills that appear to correspond to the exercises in Taiwan. Taiwan’s 10-day Han Kuang exercise, which began on July 9... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3318604/pla-offers-back-back-drill-updates-taiwans-han-kuang-exercise-ramps?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3318604/pla-offers-back-back-drill-updates-taiwans-han-kuang-exercise-ramps?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 17 Jul 2025 11:30:19 +0000