Chinese Fishing Boats Have Been Making Some Unusual Moves Lately in the East China Sea, Satellite Images and Shipping Data Show
Robert Leslie and Chris Panella, “Chinese Fishing Boats Have Been Making Some Unusual Moves Lately in the East China Sea, Satellite Images and Shipping Data Show,” Business Insider, 30 January 2026.
“The scale, geometry, coordination, and rapid assembly and dispersal of these formations are simply irreconcilable with normal fishing behavior,” Andrew S. Erickson, a professor at the US Naval War College and expert on the Chinese Maritime Militia, told Business Insider.
Speaking in a personal capacity and not for the college or Navy, he called it a “huge, precisely geo-coordinated flash mob.” …
Erickson told Business Insider it could plausibly be signaling, practice for mobilizing forces, or training.
“It underscores the reality that this third PRC [People’s Republic of China] sea force engages in threatening gray zone operations and war-preparation activities not only in the South China Sea, but also in the East China Sea, with implications for Taiwan, Japan, regional security, and vital US interests,” he said.
