The Southern Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army Conducts Exercises in the Waters East of Luzon Alongside AI Militarization Strategy: Interpretation of Dual Signals

On April 24, 2026, just as the U.S.-Philippines "Shoulder to Shoulder 2026" (Balikatan 2026) large-scale joint military exercise was set to begin, the Southern Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army announced that its naval fleet had recently conducted realistic combat drills in the waters east of Luzon Island in the Philippines. The exercise was led by the Type 055 destroyer Zunyi, and publicly released footage showed a formation of four warships sailing together. At the same time, the April 24 issue of the PLA Daily published a commentary article that used the application of AI in the Iran war as a starting point to systematically elaborate on the profound impact of artificial intelligence on the future forms of warfare, positioning AI as the "core engine for reshaping the nature of war, reorganizing military forces, and redefining the global strategic landscape." These two seemingly independent developments actually constitute a dual strategic signal that the Chinese military is conveying to the outside world in the current complex international security environment.

The timing of the Southern Theater Command's maritime exercise is certainly not a coincidence. The "Shoulder to Shoulder" exercise is the largest annual joint military exercise between the U.S. and the Philippines, lasting 19 days in 2026. China chose to conduct the drills east of Luzon Island—specifically on the Philippine Sea side—rather than in the heart of the South China Sea, and the geographical location itself carries a clear signal. Luzon Island is one of the potential sites for the U.S. to deploy the "Tomahawk" medium-range missile system and is a key node in the U.S. military's strategic layout in the first island chain. The Zunyi, as one of the most advanced surface combat platforms in the Chinese Navy, has a full-load displacement of over 12,000 tons and is equipped with a 112-cell vertical launch system capable of carrying YJ-21 hypersonic anti-ship missiles, making its presence in these waters a demonstration of strength.

It is noteworthy that the Southern Theater Command's official statement characterized this exercise as a "necessary action in response to the current regional situation," directly pointing to the escalation of U.S.-Philippine military cooperation. From a military operations perspective, the exercise conducted by the four-ship formation east of Luzon likely covered subjects such as air defense and missile defense, anti-submarine warfare, and maritime strike operations, which are precisely the critical combat capabilities needed to respond to the U.S. military presence in northern Philippines. The long-range sensing capabilities and firepower projection range of the Zunyi enable the formation to possess effective deterrence against maritime and aerial targets in the strategic passage of the Luzon Strait.

If the maritime exercise conveys a signal of the presence of traditional military power, then the AI-themed commentary in the PLA Daily showcases the Chinese military's forward-looking thinking on the future forms of warfare. This commentary points out that AI was first integrated into the entire combat cycle during the Iran war—from intelligence analysis, target identification, and operational planning to effect assessment—achieving systematic application of AI in actual combat. The article defines this phenomenon as "real-world validation" of military applications of AI and clearly states that the rapid combat-oriented transformation of AI technology is "imperative" for the PLA.

From a technical perspective, the PLA Daily particularly emphasizes the key area of "intelligent situational awareness." The article mentions that existing AI applications can achieve "proactive warning," which involves real-time identification and tracking of enemy targets, providing threat alerts, and predicting enemy intentions. This aligns with the goals pursued in the U.S. military's "Joint All-Domain Command and Control" (JADC2) concept, but the PLA is clearly exploring an intelligent combat path with its own characteristics. In recent years, China has been increasing its investment in military AI, covering multiple directions such as coordinated operations of drone swarms, intelligent command decision support, and AI-based electronic warfare strategy generation.

When examining these two threads together, it becomes evident that the Chinese military is simultaneously advancing military modernization along two dimensions. The first dimension is the display and application of hard power—normalizing the long-range activities of the Type 055 destroyer formation and maintaining military presence in key strategic maritime areas. The second dimension is the cultivation and construction of soft power—deep integration of emerging technologies such as AI, big data, and cloud computing in the military domain. This "dual-track parallel" modernization path not only maintains the deterrent effect of traditional military power in regional security games but also reserves technological capabilities and operational concepts for future intelligent warfare.

From a broader geopolitical perspective, this series of actions by the Chinese military during the U.S.-Philippines military exercises also reflects the accelerating trend of differentiation in the current security architecture of the Indo-Pacific region. The U.S. is constructing a network to contain China through multilateral and bilateral mechanisms such as AUKUS, the Quad, and the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) with the Philippines. China's response strategy is, on one hand, to balance the regional military situation through the display of its own military power, and on the other hand, to seek asymmetric advantages in technology, with the militarization of AI being a concentrated embodiment of this approach.

For small and medium-sized countries in the Indo-Pacific region, the frequent interactions and intensified competition between the two major military powers, the U.S. and China, mean they face greater pressure in their strategic choices. The Philippines showcased its deep military ties with the U.S. during the "Shoulder to Shoulder" exercise, while China directly responded through naval drills east of Luzon, establishing an interactive model that has become the "new normal" in the South China Sea and surrounding waters.

Looking ahead, as AI technology continues to permeate the military domain and the Chinese Navy's long-range operational capabilities continue to improve, similar "dual-track signals"—the simultaneous advancement of traditional power displays and emerging technology announcements—will become a routine mode of Chinese military diplomacy. For observers of regional security, it is essential to pay attention not only to the deployment dynamics of hardware platforms like the Type 055 destroyer but also to closely track the AI militarization strategic signals released through official channels like the PLA Daily, as the latter may provide more valuable insights into the long-term development direction of the Chinese military.