Map shows Chinese navy encircling US ally Australia in unprecedented show of force

A new Newsweek map shows how the Chinese navy completed a circumnavigation of Australia, a key United States ally in the South Pacific Ocean, in about a month.

The Chinese military did not immediately respond to a Newsweek request for comment.

Why It Matters

Australia is part of the U.S.-led informal grouping Quad, a “strategic alignment” of four Indo-Pacific countries, that also includes India and Japan. The U.S. is assisting Australia in acquiring a fleet of conventionally armed, nuclear-powered attack submarines.

China is expanding its global military reach and presence and has the largest navy in the world by hull count, with over 370 vessels.

In October 2024 it sent two destroyers to the island nation of Vanuatu, as it jostles with the U.S. for influence in the South Pacific Ocean.

What To Know

The Australian military said in its latest update that the Chinese task group, consisting of the destroyer CNS Zunyi, frigate CNS Hengyang and replenishment ship CNS Weishanhu, was in the Sunda Strait, a strategic Indonesian waterway, as of Sunday afternoon local time.

Both the Zunyi and the Weishanhu were photographed transiting the strait, said an X (formerly Twitter) user based in Indonesia, who claimed that the Zunyi had requested to pass in front of a local ferry and that traffic in the waterway was very busy at that time.

The Chinese naval task group has been on a northward voyage since it reached the Indian Ocean off the Australian west coast last week. It was spotted near Christmas Island, an Australian territory located about 217 miles south of Indonesia, on Friday and Saturday.

The transit of the Sunda Strait suggested the Chinese flotilla, which reached the north and northeast Australian coastline in mid-February, is returning home as the strait links the Indian Ocean with the Java Sea, which connects with the South China Sea to the northwest.

The Chinese naval ships remained outside Australian territorial waters that extend 12 nautical miles from its coastline during this deployment, according to Newsweek‘s map.

But they have transited within the Australian 200-nautical-mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) several times, an area that covers the waters beyond the country’s territorial sea.

All countries enjoy freedom of navigation in the EEZ, according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which is a legal framework for the seas and oceans.

The Chinese flotilla emphasizes Beijing’s ability to carry out naval operations close to states that do likewise around China, Alex Luck, an Australia-based naval analyst, told Newsweek.

“China may also want to compel states such as Australia to reallocate more resources to their immediate surrounds as opposed to conducting operations near China,” Luck said, adding that Beijing is likely to deploy its naval vessels near Australia again in the future.

A Chinese military observer, who requested anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the topic, told Newsweek that an increased Chinese naval presence in the South Pacific Ocean in the future is almost “inevitable,” adding that the latest deployment was a reciprocal action against the Australian and New Zealand navies for their activities off the Chinese coast.

Australia and New Zealand sent naval ships to the Taiwan Strait, which separates China and the self-ruled island of Taiwan, in September last year. China has long viewed Taiwan as its territory, although the Chinese Communist Party has never governed there.

The observer pointed out that the Chinese navy has been expanding its range of activities over the last decade.

In January, three Chinese naval vessels completed a 339-day anti-piracy deployment in the Gulf of Aden and the waters off Somalia, which saw them sail over 160,000 nautical miles as they conducted escort missions, port visits and exercises in Asia, Africa and Europe.

What People Are Saying

Australia-based naval analyst Alex Luck told Newsweek via email on Sunday: “I think the deployment was relatively unremarkable in terms of operational detail and the live fire aspect was more related to political messaging than operational or training requirements.”

A Chinese military observer, who requested anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the topic, told Newsweek via X on Sunday: “This voyage was over 12,000 nautical miles, the equivalent of a round trip for a typical Djibouti deployment, but with no intervening stops for rest and recuperation. And it was also probably the most southerly of the Chinese navy’s live exercises.”

What Happens Next

It remains to be seen whether China will conduct any naval deployments near the territory of the U.S., which has frequently deployed warships to the waters off China’s coastline.