中國在南海舉行大型海軍演練

China’s largest ever naval manoeuvres in the disputed South China Sea were a routine training exercise, the defence ministry said in its first comments about a deployment of 40 warships carried out this week.

中國國防部首次對本週中國40多艘艦艇在南海集聚發表評論，稱中國在有爭議的南中國海展開的史上規模最大的海軍演練是例行性安排。

The ships included China’s only operational aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, accompanied by dozens of other vessels sailing south of the Chinese island province of Hainan. They were recorded by satellite images first published on Monday.

數十艘艦艇伴隨中國唯一服役的航空母艦“遼寧號”，在海南省以南海域航行。整個編隊被週一發佈的衛星圖像記錄到。

Analysts said the exercises sent a message to western navies to steer clear of the South China Sea. China claims about 85 per cent of the disputed sea and has built a half-dozen artificial islands to buttress its assertion.

分析人士表示，此次演練向西方國家海軍發出一條信息，要求它們避開南中國海。中國宣稱對這一有爭議海域的大約85%擁有主權，並已構築了六個人工島來支持其主張。

Yue Gang, a retired colonel in the Peoples’ Liberation Army, said the manoeuvres were likely to be a direct response to an exercise by the USS Carl Vinson, a US supercarrier that sailed through the area in February.

解放軍退役上校嶽剛表示，此次演練很可能是對美國卡爾文森號航空母艦(USS Carl Vinson) 2月份通過南海的迴應。

China’s show of naval strength also hinted that Beijing was frustrated about regular visits by US warships — known as freedom of navigation operations — to disputed waters claimed by China.

中國海軍展示實力還暗示，北京方面對美國軍艦常態化進入中國宣稱擁有主權的爭議水域——被稱爲航行自由行動——感到不滿。

“This is certainly the largest scale [operation] in the South China Sea region,” said Mr Yue. “The US aircraft carrier has stayed long within this region. China now is showing that it’s not afraid.”

“這肯定是南海地區規模最大的行動，”嶽剛表示。“美國的航空母艦在這個地區停留了很久。中國現在表明它並不害怕。”

Ren Guoqiang, China’s defence ministry spokesman, said on Thursday that the ships were carrying out routine training, and that the manoeuvres were not directed at any country.

中國國防部發言人任國強週四表示，這些艦艇在進行例行訓練，並非針對任何國家。

“It’s aim is to test the training capabilities of the People’s Liberation Army and enhance their training capabilities. It is also aimed at improving combat abilities of the whole military,” he said.

“目的是檢驗和提高部隊訓練水平，全面提升部隊打贏能力，”他表示。

The exercise by the PLA Navy was also likely intended to send a message about China’s resolve over the breakaway territory of Taiwan, experts said. The Liaoning sailed through the straights of Taiwan to get to the exercise location, angering Taipei.

專家們表示，解放軍海軍的演練也可能意在表明中國對於分離領土臺灣的決心。遼寧艦在前往演練水域途中直接穿越臺灣海峽，令臺北方面憤怒。

“With the addition of the carrier, that’s the biggest show of force I have ever seen the PLAN conduct in all my years of PLA watching,” said Gary Li, an expert on the Chinese military with APCO Worldwide, a consultancy in Beijing. He said it would also send a strong message to the US as it considered imposing tough trade measures against China.

“隨着航空母艦加入編隊，這是我關注解放軍這麼多年來看到的解放軍海軍的最大規模實力展示，”北京諮詢公司安可(APCO Worldwide)的Gary Li表示。他說，在美國考慮對中國採取強硬的貿易措施之際，這也將向美國發出強有力的信息。

“It’s a clear message to the Americans that territorial sovereignty is not up for discussion over the trade talks,” he said.

“這對美方是一個明確的信息，即領土主權不是貿易談判中的一個議題，”他表示。

The manoeuvres appeared to be intended mainly to show presence, with ships sailing in a line, rather than practising surface combat.

此次演習似乎主要是爲了展示存在，因爲艦艇排成縱隊航行，而沒有演練水面作戰的戰鬥隊形。

Euan Graham, director of the Lowy Institute in Sydney, called the exercise “a giant floating photo opportunity”.

悉尼智庫洛伊研究所(Lowy Institute)的主任尤安?格雷厄姆(Euan Graham)形容此次演練是“一個巨大的漂浮拍照機會”。

“But any operational significance is more for the midterm future, once China’s navy starts to operate more powerful aircraft carriers,” he said. Liaoning, with its Soviet warship hull and “ski jump” deck, was little more than a training vessel, he said.

“但是，任何重大作戰意義在更大程度上仍是中期未來的事情，也就是要等到中國海軍有更強大的航空母艦入列之後，”他表示。他說，就憑“遼寧艦”的蘇式軍艦船身和滑躍起飛甲板，它比一艘訓練艦強不了多少。