On the 22nd, the Eastern Theater Command of China issued a statement, noting that the U.S. Navy’s guided-missile destroyer “Johnson” had transited the Taiwan Strait and publicized the event. The Command organized naval and air forces to monitor, guard, and handle the situation according to the law and regulations.
According to the track map released by the “South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative” think tank, the route taken by the U.S. destroyer through the Taiwan Strait was different from previous ones. The “Johnson” made a rare south-to-north transit of the strait, while a U.S. electronic reconnaissance aircraft was dispatched from Kadena Air Base to provide intelligence support to the destroyer in the airspace south of Taiwan.
The track map of the “South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative” shows that the U.S. destroyer’s transit of the Taiwan Strait was a deliberate provocation. Previously, the “Johnson” had been operating in the Western Pacific, and there was no need to transit the Taiwan Strait even if it was returning to its base in Japan. However, the ship deliberately took a detour through the Bashi Channel and then chose to pass through the Taiwan Strait.
Open-source intelligence on ship and aircraft signals shows that in response to the U.S. destroyer’s provocative transit of the Taiwan Strait, the Chinese military deployed two Z-10 attack helicopters to monitor and guard the area.
Based on ADS-B signals, it is inferred that when the USS Ralph Johnson transited the Taiwan Strait on the 22nd, two Z-10 attack helicopters repeatedly circled about 300 meters above it. The helicopters escorted the ship out of the strait, with one repeatedly flying ahead of the USS Ralph Johnson’s path and then diving back.
According to Taiwan’s defense department, on that day, eight Chinese military aircraft and six vessels were detected operating around the air and sea areas surrounding Taiwan, with three aircraft crossing the so-called “median line” of the strait, entering the southwestern and eastern airspace of Taiwan. One helicopter came within 73 nautical miles of Eluanbi, the southern tip of Taiwan. Comparing the two reports, it could be inferred that the helicopters conducting combat patrols around Taiwan that day were likely Chinese Z-10s.
According to the Eastern Theater Command’s report, since 2022, the frequency and interval of U.S. warship transits through the Taiwan Strait have gradually decreased. For example, the last time a U.S. destroyer transited the Taiwan Strait and publicized it was in early May, nearly three months before the “Johnson” transited this time.
Last year, the British media outlet Financial Times released statistics indicating that the frequency of U.S. warships and aircraft intruding near Taiwan has been decreasing. For example, in 2021, the number of U.S. military activities around Taiwan exceeded 15 times, but by 2023, it had dropped to 10.
The decrease in the frequency of U.S. military intrusions into the Taiwan Strait is largely due to the increased intensity of Chinese military combat patrols around Taiwan. According to reports from Taiwan’s defense department, even during routine patrols, China can maintain 8 to 10 military aircraft or an equivalent number of vessels around Taiwan.