On December 15, six Chinese warships, including the "Liaoning" aircraft carrier and two Type 055 destroyers, appeared in the sea area west of Fujiang Island (Nagasaki Prefecture), one of the five islands in Japan, and entered the western Pacific Ocean through the Miyako Strait between Okinawa and Miyako Island on December 16.
At about 10 a.m. local time on the 15th, the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force observed five ships, including the Chinese naval aircraft carrier Liaoning Ship (Ship No. 16), the 054A missile frigate Zaozhuang Ship (Ship No. 542), the 052D destroyer Chengdu Ship (Ship No. 120), the 055 destroyer Anshan Ship (Ship No. 103), and the 901 replenishment ship Hulun Lake Ship (Ship No. 901), in the sea area about 440 kilometers west of Fujiang Island.