澳洲和紐西蘭軍方正在監視澳洲附近的 3 艘中國軍艦 (2/2)

 Recently Yahoo News on-line picked up the following:

The Australian and New Zealand militaries are monitoring 3 Chinese warships off Australia (2/2)

The Associated Press - Rod Mcguirk

Wed, February 19, 2025 at 9:31 p.m. PST·4 min read

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New Zealand’s military was also monitoring the Chinese ships by sea and air “in coordination with Australia,” New Zealand Defense Minister Judith Collins said in a statement.

“We have not been informed by the Chinese government why this task group has been deployed into our region, and we have not been informed what its future plans are,” she added. “We will continue to monitor these vessels.”

 Experts says China's navy is projecting power around the world

Jennifer Parker, an expert associate of Australia’s National Security College and a former Australian naval officer, said Chinese warships rarely traveled so far south along the nation’s east coast.

“This is part of a broader power projection from the PLA-Navy and we should expect to see more of this in the Pacific and in the Indian Ocean,” Parker said.

The Chinese deployment comes as the head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command Adm. Samuel Paparo visits Australia this week.

Parker said the timing was likely coincidental given the Chinese deployment would have been planned well in advance and the United States doesn’t release information about their senior officers’ travel until close to the visit.

“Without knowing exactly where the ships are going, the point of this deployment, I think, is to demonstrate to Australia that they have the capability to come down and operate in our maritime domain,” Parker said.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told a news conference he was not worried by reports of Chinese warships off Sydney.

“The Chinese naval ships are complying with international law, but as we do, we are monitoring the situation and observing what is going on, as you would expect,” Albanese said.

Relations between the Chinese and Australian militaries remain dangerous

Three Chinese warships visited Sydney Harbor in 2019. But their voyage had been approved by the Australian government.

Australia’s diplomatic and trade relations with China have improved in recent years, but relations between the two militaries are dangerous.

Australia protested what it described as an unsafe interaction last week over the South China Sea where a Chinese fighter is accused of releasing flares that endangered an Australian military surveillance plane.

Guo, the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, accused the Australian aircraft of “deliberately” intruding into airspace over the disputed Paracel Islands, which China claims.

Translation

澳洲和紐西蘭軍方正在監視澳洲附近的 3 艘中國軍艦 (2/2)

（繼續）

 新西蘭國防部長 Judith Collins 在一份聲明中表示，新西蘭軍方還 “與澳大利亞協調” ，在海上和空中監視中國船隻。

她補充說： “中國政府沒有告知我們為何要派遣這個特遣組到我們這個地區，也沒有告知我們其未來的計劃”; “我們將繼續監視這些船隻。”

專家稱中國海軍正在向世界各地投射力量

澳洲國家安全學院專家助理、前澳洲海軍軍官 Jennifer Parker 表示，中國軍艦很少沿著該國東海岸向南航行這麼遠。

Parker說： “這是解放軍海軍更廣泛力量投射的一部分，我們應該會在太平洋和印度洋看到更多這樣的行動。”

中國這軍力部署，正值本週美國印度太平洋司令部司令 Samuel Paparo 海軍上將訪問澳大利亞，。

Parker表示，鑑於中國的部署早已提前計劃好，而美國直到訪問前夕才公佈其高級軍官的行程信息，因此時間安排很可能只是巧合。

Parker 說： “在不知道這些艦艇具體要去哪裡的情況下，我認為，這次部署的目的是向澳大利亞證明，他們有能力在我們的海域進行作業。”

總理 Anthony Albanese 在記者會上表示，他並不擔心有關中國軍艦出現在雪梨附近的報導。

Albanese 說： “中國海軍艦艇遵守國際法，但正如我們所做的，我們也在監視局勢，觀察事態的發展, 與你預料那樣。”

中澳兩軍關係依然危險

三艘中國軍艦2019年訪問了悉尼港。但他們的航行獲得澳洲政府的批准。

近年來，澳洲與中國的外交和貿易關係有所改善，但兩國軍事關係卻很危險。

澳洲對上週在南海上發生的不安全互動表示抗議，當時一架中國戰機被指控發射照明彈，危及一架澳洲軍用偵察機的安全。

中國外交部發言人 Guo 指責澳洲飛機「故意」侵入中國聲稱擁有主權的西沙群島領空。

So, the Australian and New Zealand militaries were monitoring three Chinese warships moving unusually far south along Australia’s east coast on an unknown mission. They say that they will make a full assessment of what the Chinese were seeking to achieve in this mission eventually. I am also interested in knowing what the Chinese navy was aiming at.