The U.S. military and Coast Guard are monitoring five Chinese icebreaking research vessels operating in or near Arctic waters off Alaska, the largest Chinese presence of its kind in the region. 

The deployment, first reported by gCaptain, exceeds by more than double the number of icebreakers the Coast Guard currently operates in the Arctic.

The flotilla reportedly includes China’s largest domestically built icebreaker, Xue Long 2; the submersible-equipped Shen Hai Yi Hao; the research vessels Ji Di and Zhong Shan Da Xue Ji Di; and Tan Suo San Hao, a Polar Class 4 icebreaker that entered service in December 2024.

In a news release, the Coast Guard said a C-130J Hercules from Air Station Kodiak responded to the Chinese research vessels Ji Di and Zhong Shan Da Xue Ji Di as they transited northeast in the Bering Sea on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter (USCGC) Waesche (WMSL 751) responded to the Zhong Shan Da Xue Ji Di as it traveled north in the Chukchi Sea above the Arctic Circle, after passing through the Bering Strait. 

“Although the vessels are operating in international waters and are not considered a Homeland Defense threat, their numbers represent an increase from years past,” a NORTHCOM spokesperson told The War Zone. “NORAD and USNORTHCOM will continue to monitor the ships’ progress while operating in the region.”

Officials note the operation continues a three-year trend of growing Chinese research vessel activity in the Arctic. In July, the Coast Guard monitored Xue Long 2 approximately 290 nautical miles north of Utqiagvik, Alaska, inside the U.S. Extended Continental Shelf.

The Coast Guard currently operates one Arctic icebreaker, USCGC Healy. It will commission the USCGC Storis, the newest icebreaker in the fleet, in Juneau, Alaska, on Sunday.