Photos Show US and China's Aircraft Carriers Deployed to Pacific Waters
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
Both the United States and China deployed their aircraft carriers in the Western Pacific Ocean on Sunday, as Washington and Beijing jostle for naval dominance in the region.
Newsweek has reached out to the Chinese Defense Ministry for comment by email.
Why It Matters
The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS George Washington returned to its home port in Japan—Yokosuka naval base near Tokyo—last November, after undergoing maintenance in Virginia since 2017, serving as one of the forward-deployed American warships to the allied country.
Meanwhile, China is challenging the First Island Chain—formed by Japan, Taiwan, and the Philippines under the U.S. containment strategy meant to keep China's forces in check—with a fleet of more than 370 naval vessels, including two aircraft carriers in active service.
The United States Navy aircraft carrier USS George Washington arrives at Yokosuka naval base in Japan on November 22, 2024.
The United States Navy aircraft carrier USS George Washington arrives at Yokosuka naval base in Japan on November 22, 2024.
Kyodo News via AP
What To Know
Photos shared on X, formerly Twitter, by a ship spotter in Japan on Sunday show the George Washington leaving its home port for sea trials. Its departure was also confirmed by a local government website that tracks visits by U.S. nuclear-powered naval vessels to Yokosuka.
Lieutenant Commander Mark Langford, a public affairs officer aboard the George Washington, told Newsweek that the aircraft carrier was underway conducting "routine operations" in the U.S. Seventh Fleet area of operations, which covers the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans.
This marked the first time the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier had left Yokosuka since its return seven months ago. The departure comes as aircraft assigned to the warship conduct field carrier landing practice on Iwo To, a Japanese island located 750 miles south of Tokyo.
While the American aircraft carrier was underway in waters near Japan, the Chinese aircraft carrier CNS Liaoning was spotted operating 124 miles north of Kuba Island—part of Japan's southwestern Senkaku Islands—the Joint Staff of the Japanese Defense Ministry announced.
The uninhabited Senkaku Islands, also known as the Diaoyu Islands in China, are claimed by Beijing, which has intensified its assertive coast guard patrols since Tokyo nationalized the islands in 2012. The U.S. ally has accused China of attempting to alter the status quo.
The Liaoning was joined by four other Chinese warships in the East China Sea, according to the report, including Type 052D destroyers CNS Qiqihar and CNS Tangshan, as well as Type 054A frigates CNS Binzhou and CNS Anyang, which were identified by hull numbers.
"Takeoff and landing of carrier-based fighter jets and helicopters was confirmed," said the Japan Joint Staff, adding that a ship and an aircraft assigned to the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, as well as fighter jets of the Japanese air force, were deployed in response.
What People Are Saying
The U.S. Navy previously said: "George Washington is [Seventh] Fleet's premiere forward-deployed aircraft carrier, a long-standing symbol of the United States' commitment to maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific region, and operates alongside allies and partners across the U.S. Navy's largest numbered fleet."
Japan's defense white paper commented: "China has been rapidly building up military capabilities while intensifying its activities in the East China Sea, where the waters surrounding the Senkaku Islands are, as well as in the Pacific."
The Chinese Defense Ministry previously responded: "Japan has been closely tracking, monitoring, and interfering with Chinese vessels and aircraft for a long time, jeopardizing the safety of Chinese vessels and aircraft and easily causing maritime and air security problems."
What Happens Next
The Chinese aircraft carrier CNS Liaoning departs Hong Kong on July 11, 2017.
The Chinese aircraft carrier CNS Liaoning departs Hong Kong on July 11, 2017.
Kin Cheung/AP Photo
It remains to be seen whether the Chinese aircraft carrier will pass through the Miyako Strait from the East China Sea and head toward the Philippine Sea, thereby breaching the island chain.
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