XI’S GOTTA HAVE IT: Japan sights two Chinese aircraft carriers in Pacific for first time.

Two Chinese aircraft carriers were spotted conducting simultaneous operations in the Pacific for the first time, in a move that Japan’s defence minister said signified Beijing’s intention to further widen its capabilities beyond its borders.

The operations were a “routine training” exercise that did not target specific countries or regions, Wang Xuemeng, a spokesperson for the Chinese Navy, said in a statement, however.

Since May, China has been flexing its muscles by sending an unusually large number of naval and coast guard vessels through a swathe of East Asian waters, according to security documents and officials, in moves that have unnerved regional capitals.

Japan’s defence ministry has confirmed the two carriers, Liaoning and Shandong, were operating in separate areas in the Pacific on Saturday, both near remote southern islands belonging to Japan.

As CDR Sal noted a week or two ago, China already closed the numbers gap, and they’re quickly closing the capabilities gap.