China’s People’s Liberation Army dispatched a naval task group led by the Type 052D guided-missile destroyer Baotou through the Yokoate Waterway and into the western Pacific on Sunday, marking the first publicly announced Chinese transit of that passage, which sits closer to the Japanese mainland than the routinely used Miyako Strait.
On April 19, the PLA Eastern Theater Command dispatched vessel formation 133 to transit Yokoate Waterway and conduct training in the Western Pacific, in order to test the far-seas operations capabilities of forces, said Senior Colonel Xu Chenghua, spokesperson of the PLA Eastern… pic.twitter.com/JKtCf6QqAz
— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) April 19, 2026
🇨🇳 China dispatched a naval task force headed by the Type-052D guided-missile destroyer Baotou (Hull 133) to transit Yokoate Waterway and conduct training in the Western Pacific, in order to test the troops’ far-seas operations capabilities. https://t.co/GKevoQouuC pic.twitter.com/eWN6BjuXnv
— MenchOsint (@MenchOsint) April 19, 2026
The mission followed Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) destroyer JS Ikazuchi’s transit of the Taiwan Strait on April 17, the 131st anniversary of the Treaty of Shimonoseki, which ceded Taiwan from Qing China to Japan in 1895.
Chinese state media reported the passage “harmed the feelings of the Chinese people,” and China’s Foreign Ministry called the move “provocative,” lodging a formal protest with Tokyo.
“It complies with international law and practice, and does not target any specific country or entity,” PLA Eastern Theater Command spokesperson Senior Col. Xu Chenghua said in a statement Sunday.
On April 19, the Chinese PLA Eastern Theater Command dispatched a naval task force headed by the Type-052D guided-missile destroyer #Baotou (Hull 133) to transit Yokoate Waterway and conduct training in the Western Pacific, in order to test the troops’ far-seas operations… pic.twitter.com/Ir6P5jLNtV
— China Military Bugle (@ChinaMilBugle) April 19, 2026
China’s Ministry of National Defense also called the Ikazuchi’s passage “a deliberate provocation” and released drone footage of the JMSDF vessel during her 14-hour Taiwan Strait transit, a step that went beyond a standard diplomatic protest.
The Baotou’s western Pacific deployment comes as Balikatan 2026, the annual US-Philippines exercise, opened Monday with Japan joining as a full active participant for the first time, contributing around 1,400 personnel and a Type 88 surface-to-ship missile system, a land-based anti-ship weapon, for live-fire drills off Paoay in northern Luzon.
🇯🇵|🇨🇳 Japan Ministry of Defense confirms that Chinese PLA Navy Type 054A frigate “Huanggang” (577) & the Type 052D destroyer “Baotou” sailed through Yokoate waterway on April 19, navigating toward the Pacific Ocean. https://t.co/KkICExo33f pic.twitter.com/MNhCoqWKvO
— MenchOsint (@MenchOsint) April 20, 2026
Japan has not officially confirmed the Ikazuchi’s passage, though local media reports indicate it would be the fourth JMSDF Taiwan Strait transit since 2024.
China simultaneously deployed two aircraft carriers into the western Pacific for the first time last June, a shift that drove Tokyo to create a Pacific Defense Planning Office on April 1.
