PLA Eastern Theater Launches 'Joint Combat Readiness Patrols' in East China Sea After JMSDF Transit

China's Eastern Theater Command announced 'joint combat readiness patrols' in the East China Sea following the transit of Japan's JMSDF destroyer Ikazuchi through the Taiwan Strait the previous day. A PLA naval task group led by the advanced Type 052D destroyer Baotou transited waters near Amami Oshima off Kagoshima Prefecture into the Western Pacific. Chinese military spokesperson characterized the exercises as 'a routine arrangement organized in accordance with the annual plan, aiming at testing the joint operations capabilities' — standard PLA framing used to deny direct linkage while clearly signaling a counter-response. China also lodged a strong diplomatic protest against the JMSDF transit, calling it 'a deliberate provocation' that threatened regional peace.