Foreign ministry says PLA aircraft warned off an Australian helicopter that was ‘disrupting’ a Chinese exercise.

‘They shouldn’t have been at any risk’, Anthony Albanese said of Australian defence personnel who he said were operating in international airspace enforcing UN sanctions on North Korea.

The Fujian aircraft carrier’s maiden mission has been deliberately timed to coincide with US-Philippines military drills, analysts say.

Coastguards based in Fujian have been increasingly active around the Taipei-held island since an incident when two fishermen died in February.

No aircraft were visible on the carrier’s deck in official images and videos, with testing of its electromagnetic launch catapults expected in later trials.

The warship is China’s first to use an advanced electromagnetic catapult that allows fighters to be launched more frequently.

Contract for Hangor-class vessels was signed in 2015 during a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Senior Colonel Zhou Bo shares his insights on global and regional challenges, based on long experience in military diplomacy.

Agreement on inter-theatre cooperation and dialogue mechanism with PLA comes as France joins US-Philippine drills in contested South China Sea waters.

A shortage of domestic industrial capacity and concerns about China’s dominance are behind courting of Asian allies’ shipyards, analysts say.

‘Our interaction is important for strategic stability on the planet,’ Dong Jun says after meeting with Sergey Shoigu; both chiefs back continued military cooperation.

Central Asian region faces ‘complex’ security situation, Chinese defence minister says in meeting with Kazakh president in Astana.

While visiting Chongqing’s Army Medical University, Xi says China needs ‘new generation of red military doctors’ and stresses importance of improved training, logistical support and specialised battlefield medicine as Beijing steps up war readiness.

Head of US space command warns that China’s space development is make its terrestrial forces ‘more precise, more lethal and more far ranging’.

While Philippines was absent from forum, members passed updated Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea, a non-binding multilateral agreement.

Anonymous defence intelligence bureaucrat casts doubt on system design of first Chinese strategic weapon of its kind.

Chinese navy releases video showing launch of JL-2 ballistic missile from nuclear submarine in display of its second-strike capability just days before US secretary of state’s trip to Beijing and Shanghai.

Among the buyers were the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Shandong Artificial Intelligence Institute, the Hubei Earthquake Administration and a state-run aviation research centre.

New force is ‘a key pillar in coordinating the construction and application of the network information system’, according to President Xi Jinping

Swedish think tank finds regional expenditure on armed forces rises at its highest rate in a decade.

Admiral Stephen Koehler will lead US delegation to symposium hosted by PLA Navy in and is expected to meet “Chinese counterparts”, diplomatic sources tell the Post.

Next week’s iteration of the annual joint exercise will be the biggest and a clear signal to Beijing, observers say.

PLA Daily warns that a deal between the US military and a new SpaceX unit poses huge security challenges for ‘other countries’.

Two PLA Navy ships are the only vessels to have docked at the Chinese-financed Ream naval base since upgrades last year, according to a US intelligence report.

Location is ‘deterrent signal’ to Beijing as tensions spike with Manila, analyst says, while another sees Washington readying for hot conflict over Taiwan or South China Sea.

Mid-range launcher now in the Philippines is a ‘powerful weapon’ capable of retaliatory strikes on mainland China, analysts say.