Japan this week confirmed that two Chinese aircraft carriers have operated together for the first time in the Pacific.

PLA is coordinating carriers in the blue-water arena, a tactic it would likely use to deter US forces in a Taiwan conflict, analysts say.

A patrol aircraft dispatched by Japan—a treaty ally of the United States—was intercepted by fighter jets launched from a Chinese aircraft carrier operating in the wider western Pacific. Newsweek has contacted the Chinese Defense and Foreign Ministries via email for comment.