Micah McCartney
Satellite imagery appears to show a rare assembly of Chinese amphibious assault ships in the Yangtze River Estuary, suggesting a high state of readiness among forces that would likely play a central role in any invasion of Taiwan.
Why It Matters
China continues to expand the capabilities of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), now the world’s largest by hull count, with more than 370 warships and submarines.
Among them are landing dock ships, helicopter carriers, and specialized landing barges that analysts say would spearhead a cross-strait assault.
Beijing claims Taiwan as its own territory and has vowed to pursue unification—by force if necessary. Chinese forces have intensified pressure on the island through large-scale military drills and near-daily air sorties across the Taiwan Strait’s median line, moves Taipei and Washington call destabilizing.
Imagery captured by the European Space Agency's Sentinel-2 satellites on October 6, 2025, annotated by Newsweek, shows the locations of China's amphib...Read More | X/MT Anderson
Newsweek reached out to the Chinese Foreign Ministry by email with a request for comment outside of office hours.
What To Know
Satellite photos taken on October 6, 2025, show multiple amphibious vessels moored in Shanghai’s Yangtze River Estuary, a key maritime logistics hub.
Open-source defense analyst MT Anderson identified a Type 071 Yuzhao-class landing platform dock (LPD)—a 25,000-ton transport ship capable of carrying landing craft, armored vehicles, and several hundred troops to a contested beachhead during an amphibious assault.
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