China Used Amphibious Vehicles, Ro-Ro Ship in Attack Drill; Yomiuri Determines Private-Sector Ship Joined in Exercises

The Yomiuri Shimbun

20:00 JST, January 12, 2026

The Chinese military used amphibious vehicles and a private-sector cargo ship in a summer 2025 drill off Guangdong Province near Taiwan that is believed to have been training for landing operations, The Yomiuri Shimbun has determined from satellite images and other information.

The drill was conducted in waters off China’s southern coast and was likely a simulation drill for an operation to land in Taiwan that would involve both military forces and private ships. The Japanese government is paying close attention to these moves.

The Yomiuri Shimbun analyzed the Chinese military’s moves from satellite images and ship movements under the automatic identification system (AIS), which automatically transmits such information about ships as their position and sailing course.

It confirmed the presence of a large cargo vessel, which was deemed to be a roll-on and roll-off (Ro-Ro) ship, off Shanwei City, Guangdong Province, on July 16, 2025. When a Ro-Ro ship berths at a port, the operators of trucks and other vehicles can drive directly in and out of the ship’s body.

Behind the Ro-Ro ship sailed a single line of 11 vessels that were deemed to be amphibious. The satellite images showed that the 11 vessels were moving, causing foaming waves, but the Ro-Ro ship seemed to be standing still, as no waves were seen around it.

Amphibious vehicles can depart from ships while at sea and directly land on sandy beaches or similar forms of land. They are used to transport soldiers and supplies.

Bonji Ohara, a senior fellow of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation and an expert on Chinese security policy, said, “It’s possible that [the Chinese military units] were conducting a drill in which amphibious vehicles departed from the Ro-Ro ship and returned to the ship at sea, with a landing operation in mind.”

To supplement a shortage of its own transportation capabilities, it is assumed that the Chinese military aims to establish landing capabilities in which it mobilizes Ro-Ro ships carrying amphibious vehicles and they land at positions that will be difficult for the defending side to anticipate.

Based on AIS information, the cargo ship that participated in the drill was deemed to be the Pu Tuo Dao, a Ro-Ro ship operated by a major Chinese shipping company. The Yomiuri Shimbun determined that there was an almost complete match between such features as the shape and size of the ship, which the company has publicized, and those in the satellite images.

The Pu Tuo Dao is registered at a port in Dalian, Liaoning Province, in northern China facing the Bohai Sea. Usually, the ship conducts scheduled sailings mainly between the port and Yantai, Shandong Province.

According to the AIS information, the Pu Tuo Dao departed Dalian on July 8, 2025, and passed through the Taiwan Strait on July 11. On July 16, the ship engaged in some activity off Shanwei and sailed to the north. On July 21, the ship returned to Dalian.

According to a report by Taiwan’s Institute for National Defense and Security Research, it is possible that the Pu Tuo Dao sailed to the south again in August 2025 and participated in the military drill off Shanwei together with other Ro-Ro ships.

The Yomiuri Shimbun’s analysis also confirmed the ship’s moves in August.

A report by the U.S. Naval War College said the Pu Tuo Dao participated in the Chinese military’s landing drill off Guangdong Province in March 2023 and deployed amphibious vehicles and assault boats on the sea.

The Japanese government also obtained information about the joint drills by China. A government source said, “China is actively strengthening its capability to launch forces from the sea, and we have closely watched these moves.”

Concerning the use of private-sector ships by the Chinese military, the Yomiuri’s analysis has found that the military possesses several fleets of ships carrying large mobile floating piers and has conducted military-private sector joint landing drills with Ro-Ro ships and other private-sector vessels.

It is assumed that the Chinese military has deployed many private-sector ships, conducted drills simulating actual warfare and aimed to acquire various types of landing capabilities so as to enhance its landing operation abilities for an attack on Taiwan.