The U.S. Coast Guard said Friday (8/8) that it had responded to two Chinese research vessels in American waters in the Arctic. The vessels were transiting northeast in the Bering Sea, according to a Coast Guard press release.
Officials are now monitoring a total of five similar boats in or near U.S. waters in the region. Only one of the vessels was classified as an icebreaker, but the other four are still considered “ice capable,” according to an email from Coast Guard Lt. Pamela Manns, a public affairs officer for the Arctic District.
The two new boats were first spotted by C-130 military transport planes from Air Station Kodiak on Tuesday [8/5]. A Coast Guard cutter responded to one of them in the Chukchi Sea in the Arctic Circle on Wednesday [8/6].
The vessels are consistent with more Chinese research activity in the area in recent years, according to the release. Three research boats were also found in the region last year, as well as one in 2022. No Chinese research boats were reported in 2023.
