A fleet of large civilian cargo ships has sailed through the Taiwan Strait after heading south from the Bohai Sea off northern mainland China, prompting speculation about a possible joint amphibious landing drill with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
The seven ro-ro, or “roll-on/roll-off” ships, with the Yantai-based Bohai Ferry Company in Shandong province, deviated from their normal shipping routes in the Bohai Sea, according to Maritime Optima, a live ship tracker.
As of Thursday, two of them – the Bohai Zuanzhu and Zhong Hua Fu Xing – had docked at the port of Quanzhou in the strait-facing Fujian province, while the remaining five were still in the waters near Quanzhou.
Compared to the PLA’s Type 075 amphibious assault ship, which can carry helicopters, tanks, and infantry fighting vehicles and has a displacement of 40,000 tonnes, Bohai Zuanzhu’s displacement is 35,000 tonnes.
Ro-ro ships are designed to carry wheeled cargo like vehicles and train carriages that can be loaded and unloaded on their own wheels or by transport vehicles.
This feature eliminates the cumbersome process of hoisting cars into the ship’s hold like other cargo, improving loading and unloading efficiency as well as reducing the risk of vehicle damage.
In recent years, ro-ro ships have increasingly taken part in joint transport and landing drills with the PLA as tensions across the Taiwan Strait have risen.
Last May, two large ro-ro ships, the Bohai Mingzhu and Bohai Baozhu, were spotted heading southwards into the Taiwan Strait after completing their regular transport missions and taking part in PLA drills.
In response, Taiwan’s military last year incorporated new drills into its annual Han Kuang exercise that were designed to counter the potential threat posed by mainland ro-ro ships.
Beijing views Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary. Most countries, including the United States, the self-governed island’s biggest international backer, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state. However, Washington is opposed to any attempt to take Taiwan by force and is committed to supplying it with weapons for defence.
Beijing has ramped up military pressure on Taiwan since the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party came to power nearly a decade ago.
In 2015, Beijing unveiled technical standards on new civilian ships, including ro-ro ships, to meet demand for possible defence use amid the mainland’s push to mobilise civilian resources and facilities for war preparedness.
The move clarified specifications including ship performance, target use and design requirements in building civilian vessels.
Bohai Ferry is among the mainland companies producing vessels with military transport capabilities such as troop projection, according to a December 2019 commentary published in the official PLA Daily.
In August 2022, seven large ro-ro ships of the Bohai series from Bohai Ferry were spotted leaving their original operating area in the Yellow Sea and heading south.
And in July 2023, a large number of PLA personnel and equipment conducted joint training with 10,000-tonne civilian ships, according to state-owned China National Radio.
