Thousands of fishing boats have been gathering in the East China Sea in naval formations—unusual for such vessels—raising concerns that the dragon might capture Taiwan amid volatile global geopolitics.
Researchers analysing ship-tracking data found that between 1,300 and 2,000 vessels assembled in long, parallel formations about 300 kilometres northeast of Taiwan on at least two separate occasions.
The formations were first observed on December 25, 2025, and appeared again on January 11, 2026.
The vessels, identified with the help of Automatic Identification System (AIS) signals, reportedly paused for up to 3 days even in very high speed winds in the region.
Chinese fishing boats were reportedly active in waters where harsh conditions had earlier forced South Korean vessels to head back to port in December, before the flotilla later dispersed.
A similar incident had unfolded earlier when 200–300 Chinese fishing boats had surrounded Japan-administered Senkaku Islands.
Notably, China has contested Japan’s claim on the island, which it calls Diaoyu, terming it an integral part of the country.
“I’ve never heard of such a huge mobilisation before,” Kyushu University’s International Relations professor and an expert on Chinese maritime policy, Chisako Masuo, told Nikkei.
“It could be seen as putting pressure on Japan and Taiwan,” Masuo added.
Highlighting that the formations were definitely different from the usual fishing boats, Jason Wang, chief operating officer of the satellite analytics firm, ingeniSPACE, said, “Something didn’t look right to me because in nature very rarely do you see straight lines,” adding that “We’ve seen like two, 300, up to a thousand Chinese fishing boats congregate, but anything exceeding a thousand I thought was unusual.”
China has earlier carried out several large-scale military drills around Taiwan, which many analysts view as practice runs for a possible blockade or even the capture of the island, according to former US Navy officer Thomas Shugart.
Speaking to AFP, Shugart said civilian vessels, including fishing boats, play a crucial role in China’s military planning for any potential operation against Taiwan.
He noted that these boats could help compensate for the Chinese military’s limited number of specialised amphibious landing ships needed for such missions.
