A report from a Beijing-based think tank outlines the heightened military activities of the United States in the South China Sea throughout 2024. The document indicates that the US military intensified its operations, comprising a range of activities including reconnaissance flights, naval deployments, and strategic exercises meant to enhance deterrence against China.

According to the report, the US military conducted close to 1,000 sorties of aerial reconnaissance utilizing large aircraft, alongside ocean surveillance missions undertaken by ships recording 706 ship-days of activity in the region.

This marked a notable increase compared to the previous year.

The US Navy's carrier strike groups were deployed to the South China Sea on eight separate occasions during the year, illustrating a sustained military presence intended to showcase US capabilities in the area.

The operations also involved a variety of nuclear-powered submarines, with a total of ten attack submarines, two cruise missile submarines, and one ballistic missile submarine reported to be active in the South China Sea and nearby waters.

Furthermore, the frequency of incursions by US bombers into the region reportedly rose, with crews engaging in drills focusing on coordinated maneuvers and distributed combat operations.

This follows a trend noted since 2009, where US military activities targeting China have been climbing in both frequency and intensity.

Despite competing global events, including conflicts in the Red Sea, Russia-Ukraine, and Israel-Palestine, the US has maintained its military focus in the South China Sea, utilizing existing bases in the Philippines as a pivotal component of its strategy.

The report also emphasizes that during peacetime, conducting thousands of reconnaissance missions and participating in numerous exercises in another country's adjacent waters can be seen as a violation of international principles as outlined in the United Nations Charter and the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

While the Trump administration aims for strategic retrenchment on a global scale, it has not diminished the consensus among US strategists regarding the Indo-Pacific as a priority arena, positioning China as a principal competitor.

The report anticipates that even if regional crises calm, the number of US naval and air forces that could be repositioned in the Indo-Pacific will remain limited.

Current assessments suggest that approximately 60 to 70 percent of the US's conventional naval and air assets available for overseas missions are already stationed in the Western Pacific, implying that significant further deployments may be constrained.

To adapt to operational demands, it is projected that the US military may increasingly turn to unmanned platforms and autonomous weapons systems to augment its activities in the South China Sea and adjacent areas.