Xi Helping Putin Aim For Alaska? China & Russia Send In 11 Warships, US Responds With Destroyers

China and Russia conducted a joint naval operation near Alaska's southwestern coast involving 11 vessels. This prompted a response from the US, which dispatched four Navy destroyers and a P-8 Poseidon aircraft to monitor and guide the foreign vessels away from its territory. Although the Chinese and Russian fleets approached the Aleutian Islands, they did not enter US territorial waters. US Senator Dan Sullivan emphasised the improved US response compared to a less forceful reaction in 2022, underscoring the need for more naval assets in the region, including icebreakers. The recent manoeuvres come against a backdrop of heightened tensions, with previous close encounters by Chinese and Russian vessels near US territories and growing concerns about Russia's historical claims to Alaska, once purchased by the US from Russia in 1867.