China’s most advanced naval ship on Thursday patrolled close to Japanese coastal waters for the first time, in a move seen as reflecting its improved ability to deter United States military action in the Western Pacific.

The patrol took place at 11 a.m., when a Type 055 destroyer and two other vessels passed by about 250 kilometers away from Tsushima, a Japanese island. The type 055 destroyer is among the largest used by the People’s Liberation Army Navy, and it was the first time one had been spotted close to Japanese coastal waters, officials in Japan said.

Government-linked analysts saw the incident as indicating China had become more advanced at anti-ship ballistic missile research and development.

The increased Chinese capability would be the main cause for a loss of balance of power by the U.S. navy around the island chain linking Okinawa, Taiwan and the Philippines, according to a report by the National Institute for Defense Studies, a think tank under the Japanese Ministry of Defense.

The unpublished report, the contents of which were reported by Kyodo News Agency, said that the COVID-19 pandemic had accelerated Chinese President Xi Jinping’s hard-line attitude. It was referring to repeated incursions by Chinese marine vessels in the area around the disputed Japanese-administered Senkaku islands, which China calls the Diaoyus.

The report recommended that Japan continue its tough response in the East China Sea and the South China Sea.

It also criticized China for “forcibly implementing a crackdown on anti-government activities” in Hong Kong through the national security law, and for increasing military pressure on Taiwan.

The world was facing the pressure of division as a result of intense competition between China and the U.S., and the pandemic had intensified this divide, the report said.

Meanwhile, Japan’s most advanced naval cruiser Haguro reportedly entered into service on Friday, enhancing the country’s capability to respond to ballistic missiles.

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