The China Intelligence: What open sources tell us about Chinese forces, weapons, and strategy.

The People’s Liberation Army is building an “invisible net” across the western Pacific, a five-layer, seabed-to-space sensor architecture known as the PLA Navy and Russia’s Joint Sea-2025 exercises near Vladivostok. In joint anti-submarine warfare drills, Chinese and Russian forces linked their communications and shared hydro-meteorological and air-sea tracks in real time. The goal, according to Chinese state media, was to leave deep-diving submarines with nowhere to hide.

This exercise served as an early demonstration of a mature, automated kill web that China plans to spread across multiple seas and oceans. Intended to enable persistent, real-time tracking across vast areas, the web will consist of five layers:

·         Ocean Star Cluster (space): A constellation of satellites, centered on thehttps:/m.fx361.cc/news/2022/0525/13608797.html.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzpiNjhjOmNmYjY5MmU2MDhlZmZlYTI5ZmQ1MjRlNmFmN2NiZTcyYzMwZTUyZTFiNzNiNjhkNjgxYjZlMzVhYzFlMGFmNWY6cDpUOk4”>Smart buoys, https:/www.aas.net.cn/cn/article/doi/10.16383/j.aas.c240334?viewType=HTML&utm.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzphOWFiOjg0ZTQxN2I1Yzg5M2M5MDdmZDliOGQzYjQyNTM1ZTYxODNkZDJhOTE1MzZiNzE3YjliZmU0MTZjNDlmODAwNjQ6cDpUOk4”>unmanned surface vessels hold station across vital straits and shelves. They sample the upper ocean and act as crucial routers, translating slow underwater acoustic data packets into high-bandwidth satellite or cellular bursts for transmission ashore.

·         https:/pol.ouc.edu.cn/_upload/article/files/08/b6/93b19dcb4d68acfe8c4c6cb3e723/8da58906-1001-43d3-83d6-2fb49c284574.pdf.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzplNDVmOjczNWZlMmI1ZWNkM2YxZjA1ODRkMzkxNzE4MmIzNzUxOTA1YTcyYjk3NzJmNWZhNTIwY2ZhYmMxOTJlYjU3YWE6cDpUOk4”>Undersea Perspective (seabed): This is the backbone of the entire grid. Connected by undersea cables, observatories and hubs host passive arrays, precise clocks, and navigation beacons. They provide essential docking, data offload, and recharging for visiting vehicles, allowing unmanned submarines to loiter quietly and redeploy without surfacing, which drastically extends their endurance and reduces exposure.

·         https:/www.163.com/dy/article/G1R9V1CN0511DV4H.html.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzoyMTczOmQzMDM0ZTQ3OTFmZGVjZDI4ZTBlNmUyZDgzMTU2NGNiNzliZmFlOGJhNWFmYTg5MTllZmMyNTk4ZjAyNWFjZmY6cDpUOk4”>primer, “From Kill Chain to Kill Web,” PLA theorists warn that a traditional, linear “kill chain” collapses when a single node is destroyed. Their response is thehttp:/222.198.130.40:81/Qikan/Article/Detail?id=7112384243&from=Qikan_Search_Index.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzphMWExOjcxMGExZTY4MDlhZGE3OTVhOGIwNzg3YWIyM2I4MDIyZDM1YzExMTAyMWRhZTk4MjRmMzNlZTI2NTJlZDBhYTk6cDpUOk4”> study demonstrated a space-guided sea strike model that can compute 45 alternative paths and rank them by strike power and closure time. A PLA teamhttps:/www.jc2.org.cn/fileup/PDF/JCC-CN-202200198.pdf.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzoyNTA3OjI4ZTljNDY2NjRhZWNlN2Y3NzBiNWNhOGQwNGUyMDgwYmU3NmVlYzcwZTMzMGFlNzBmNmQxMGY0ZGQ5NTQzZmI6cDpUOk4”>a measurable metric for the PLA, is key to keeping the web fighting under fire.

This concept has moved quickly from the lab to the ocean, with a number of building blocks in the Transparent Oceanhttps:/m.fx361.cc/news/2021/0813/20974730.html.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6Nzo0ZmUxOjUwMzQxNGY0MGUxMmY2NzIyMDA1OWI2NDQwNTBjNGFlNTY3NTJkMTI5OTg4NjBmMTFlMTNiZjIxNzUwODM1Mzg6cDpUOk4”> linkedseabed probes to shore in 2014 and proved real-time undersea data flow. Today, the China Academy of Electronics and Information Technology runs a cross-domain maritime network that spans space, air, shore, surface, and subsea platforms to support situational awareness and environmental monitoring. Ocean University of Chinahttps:/epaper.qingdaonews.com/qdrb/html/2025-07/10/content_144590_2387406.htm.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzpmMjIxOmE4MjU2MTgzNzZkOGVjYTNmMmZlYjY0Yjk2NDU4MDRkNjlmY2Q2OWE3Y2ZkNGU0YjhlYjIwODQ1NmQ4MWVjZjE6cDpUOk4”> keeps watch on one of the Western Pacific’s busiest water highways.

China’s extra-large uncrewed undersea vehicle, or XLUUV, effort is alsohttps:/gzw.sz.gov.cn/gkmlpt/content/5/5625/post_5625334.html.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzpkMjZjOjBmYTUzODYyNzhiNmUzNDY2NzI2NmM2ZTZhNzQ5MjRiMWYyNmFmNDA0YTExZmZkOTFlZTExZGZkZWU5ZmU1MDg6cDpUOk4#1904”> “Deep Sea Key Technologies &  Equipment” initiative, the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Shenyang Institute of Automation kicked off “XLUUV. More recently, Tianjin University’s Haiyan deep-sea gliders havehttps:/www.quanzhou.gov.cn/zfb/xxgk/zfxxgkzl/ztzl/kpzl/qykj/202307/t20230712_2903524.htm.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzpmZThjOjg3ZTg2MGY0ZTI1ZWRlOGE5M2NlNGM1NTVjZGMzNWFmOGZmMzVjNjEzMDFiYjZiYzVkMWE5YTdhNWMyODNlMzI6cDpUOk4”> Blue Whale wave-gliders act as surface relays, holding station for weeks and backhauling data from subsurface nodes to shore. Advances in quieting, batteries, and acoustic arrays have since moved from labs and academic settings into PLAhttps:/patents.google.com/patent/CN111260900B/zh.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzoxZTQxOjE2NWM2N2FkMWRlMTlhODA2Yzg2OTEzNDQ0ZjE2ZTRhNjU4N2RhZTQzYTIxOWM2ZTRjMjUxZWM2ZTM2NzA5YTk6cDpUOk4”> designs andPLA Navy has also begunhttps:/shuixiagf710.ijournals.cn/szhyysxgf/article/html/20230108.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6Nzo4Y2M0OmFhOWExMjg0NmQzODBjN2E4NGVjNmRlYjMwM2M2NTk5MTk0Y2Y4MTE4MTVjNDFmMzBiNWQ1MWEyNWQ4NDNkYzk6cDpUOk4”> studies stress that persistent deep-depth UUVs patrols will rely on endurance and efficiency. This mirrors WesternUUV autonomy and energy harvesting. As a result, China’s near-term priorities in the power realm include https:/www.oaepublish.com/articles/microstructures.2023.30.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzpjYWEwOjA3NjBiYTJhMWIzYjI5MDQ5ZjY1MTY3MmZjYTY3YzBkNzQ5OGVjNzA1MTFmMWQzMTc0M2ExZTE3YzhmMTdmMDQ6cDpUOk4”>seawater metal-air cells for expendable nodes, andhttps:/www.frontiersin.org/journals/communications-and-networks/articles/10.3389/frcmn.2024.1439529/pdf.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzowMWE4OmIyNGYyN2RmMjMwODg5ZjI4ZTBlMGUxNjMzM2Q3MzJjODMyMmU2NzgxMzkwMjk1NDg5M2EwZDg0NWM1OWY4MjY6cDpUOk4”> bottleneck in contested waters. Optics need clear water and precise alignment. Cellular communications die offshore. Acoustics degrade in cluttered littorals. Hence the emphasis on multi-pipe relays and “wake-up” schemes that sip milliwatts of power until needed. Recent Chinesehttps:/patents.google.com/patent/CN112217577A/zh.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6NzpiMTA1OmQ5MmUyYzEzZGU0ZjBiZGUwODJkODBmYmQyOTNjMTcyMjVmMjcyOGM4NjEwNWVjNDZkNTMzODE3YzRjY2FmMDA6cDpUOk4”> patents detail ultra-low-power acoustic wake-ups that let dormant nodes sleep for months and join the net only when cued.

The U.S. and its allies should watch for Transparent Ocean work, especially in key choke points such as the South China Sea, waters around Taiwan, the Luzon Strait, the Straits of Malacca, and approaches to Guam.

A wider, denser and more effective Chinese sensor network will leave allied submarines with fewer places to hide, while faster cue-to-fire loops shrink the window within which they can be targeted. This will significantly complicate operations not just in a potential future war, but also peacetime covert and intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance operations.

To contend with the changing seas, the United States and its allies should adopt a “mesh-vs-mesh” approach that recognizes that hiding is a shrinking option and instead builds on twin pillars of counter-sensing and counter-UUV operations. Each will require the U.S. Navy and its allies to develop new tactics and doctrine. Sensors can be foiled with deception and jamming, along with building more resilient, interoperable communications. In turn, UUVs can themselves be hunted, disrupted or even defeated through both kinetic and electromagnetic means.

Working with partners in the region will also be essential to out-cycle Beijing’s new web of observation.https:/www.asianmilitaryreview.com/2024/02/japan-pursues-greater-undersea-situational-awareness/.YXAzOmJsdWVwYXRobGFiczphOm86ZTU5M2Q1ZTIzMzBkYjEzZTUyOGU1MGM4Zjg4NzQzYTU6Nzo2NWJhOmQyMGU3NjYyZTg2OWRkMWJiM2VjMjY2YWM2MGU5Y2UxNzUzNjhhNTNiZTllOGM0YjViNDMxNzBmMTk5NWU0MzY6cDpUOk4”>Japanese investments in long-range underwater communications can strengthen command and control around the Ryukyu Arc.

Allies should stitch these efforts into more cohesive acquisitions and a shared, rehearsed playbook. Near-term priorities must include joint deception drills and seabed docking trials that remove human logistics from long-endurance UUV operation, as well as being prepared to deploy or even pre-position counter-UUV patrol boxes where PLA buoys and gliders already operate.

Tye Graham is a Senior Researcher with BluePath Labs and a retired U.S. Army Foreign Area Officer.

P.W. Singer is Strategist at New America and the author of multiple books on technology and security, including Wired for War, Ghost Fleet, Burn-In, andLikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media.