Chinese naval vessel spotted off Hawaiian coast

A Chinese naval vessel was spotted patrolling near the coast of Hawaii this week, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported Thursday.

An Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) spokesperson confirmed that the military monitored a Chinese naval vessel over the course of the week “operating in international waters in the vicinity of Hawaii,” according to the Star-Advertiser. U.S. officials have previously warned of Chinese intelligence operations in the region, and Russian vessels had also encroached on the Hawaiian islands in previous incidents.

“U.S. Indo-Pacific Command is monitoring a PLA vessel which was operating in international waters in the vicinity of Hawaii,” a spokesperson for INDOPACOM said in a statement to the DCNF. “As part of our normal daily operations, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command closely tracks all vessels and aircraft in the Indo-Pacific area of operations through a combination of joint capabilities to protect the U.S. homeland, support our Allies and partners and operate in accordance with international law of the sea and in the air to ensure that all nations can do the same without fear or contest and in order to secure a free and open Indo-Pacific.”

It is unclear how far offshore the Chinese vessel was, as is the mission it was pursuing.

China has flexed its naval muscles deeper into the Pacific Ocean in recent months, deploying the Liaoning and the Shandong aircraft carriers on June 6 and 7 along with other Chinese warships as close as 185 miles from Japan’s shores, according to multiple reports. China has been using the deeper ventures into the ocean to test its deep water capabilities, with the Peoples’ Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) usually only patrolling the “first chain” of islands between the South China Sea up to Japan’s southernmost islands.

China has also made more aggressive maneuvers around Taiwan, most recently holding large-scale military drills around the island in April.

As of 2025, the PLAN is estimated to have 234 warships, enough to make it the largest navy in the world, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).

The U.S. is also no stranger to operating its warships in Chinese waters, making routine patrols in the South China Sea and near Taiwan with regional allies in order to dissuade Chinese aggression in the region.

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