In recent years, China has towed a decommissioned offshore oil-drilling rig and two giant octagonal steel cages into the sea between China and South Korea, saying that the structures were used as deep-sea fish farms in shared waters. But South Koreans fear that they are more than that and could be used to expand China’s military influence.

最近几年里，中国将一个退役的海上石油钻井平台和两个巨大的八角形钢笼拖到中韩之间的海域，声称这些设施用于在共享水域建深海养鱼场。但韩国人担心用途不止于此，可能被用来扩大中国的军事影响力。

South Korea’s National Assembly formally took issue with the Chinese structures on Monday when its ocean and fisheries committee condemned them as “a threat to maritime safety,” in a resolution adopted with bipartisan support. Those fears were bolstered on Tuesday by a report from the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.

韩国国会周一正式对这些设施提出异议，国会的海洋水产委员会通过了一项得到两党支持的决议，谴责它们“对海上安全构成威胁”。总部设在华盛顿的战略与国际研究中心周二发布的一份报告进一步佐证了这种担忧。

“While available information suggests that the platforms are genuinely focused on aquaculture, concerns that the platforms may be dual-use are not unfounded, given China’s track record in the South China Sea,” said the report, which used satellite imagery and other data to track the installations. Dual-use refers to a second potential use for military purposes.

“虽然现有信息表明这些平台确实主要用于水产养殖，但考虑到中国在南中国海的过往记录，对这些平台可能具有双重用途的担忧并非毫无根据，”该报告写道。报告使用了卫星图像和其他数据来追踪这些设施，双重用途指的是它们具有潜在的军事用途。

“Even without further expansion, the platforms are likely already collecting data that could have value for undersea navigation and detection,” the report said.

“即使不进一步扩大，这些平台也可能已经在收集对海底导航和探测有价值的数据，”该报告写道。

South Koreans see striking parallels between the Chinese installations and what Beijing has done in the South China Sea. China initially built artificial islands there for civilian purposes, but they were gradually transformed into military outposts, leading to territorial disputes with countries including the Philippines and Vietnam.

在韩国人看来，中国的这些设施与它在南中国海的所作所为存在惊人的相似之处。中国在那里先是建了民用的人工岛，后来逐渐将这些岛改造为军事前哨，进而引发了与菲律宾、越南等国的领土争端。

The tensions creeping up around the Chinese platforms in the Yellow Sea — called the West Sea by Koreans — will likely become one of the first challenges faced by the government of President Lee Jae Myung, who took office this month. Mr. Lee has vowed to improve ties with Beijing while at the same time promising to strengthen his country’s alliance with Washington. Mr. Lee hopes to meet China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Gyeongju, South Korea, in November.

围绕中国在黄海（韩国人称之为西海）平台的紧张局势不断升级，很可能成为本月上任的李在明总统政府所面临的首批挑战。李在明已誓言要改善与中国的关系，同时也承诺加强韩美联盟。李在明希望在今年11月韩国庆州举行亚太经合组织峰会期间与中国最高领导人习近平见面。

When the two countries held talks in April on oceanic cooperation, South Korean officials expressed their “deep concern” about the Chinese structures, warning that they would not allow them to undermine Seoul’s rights, the South Korean Foreign Ministry said. But China insisted that the structures were nothing but deep-sea salmon farms. Both sides agreed to continue dialogue to resolve the dispute.

韩国外交部称，两国曾在今年4月就海洋合作问题举行会谈，韩国官员当时曾对中国的这些设施表示了“深切关注”，并警告，他们不会允许这些设施损害韩国的权利。但中国坚称相关设施只用于深海鲑鱼养殖场。双方同意继续对话以解决争端。

China’s growing assertiveness in the Yellow Sea comes at the same time Beijing has called for bilateral relations with Seoul to reach a “higher level” after Mr. Lee was sworn in as president.

中国在黄海日益强硬的同时，北京方面也呼吁李在明总统上任后让中韩双边关系“向更高水平迈进”。

That reflects Beijing’s carrot and stick approach with its neighbors. On one hand, it hopes to warm ties by offering Seoul economic inducements. On the other, China considers its dominance of regional waters a vital strategic interest, one that it feels it can pursue because of its military strength.

这反映了中国政府对邻国的“胡萝卜加大棒”政策。一方面，中国希望通过向韩国提供经济利益来改善两国关系；另一方面，中国认为本国在东亚水域的主导地位对其战略利益至关重要，中国觉得自己有能力凭借军事实力来追求这个目标。

In recent years, South Korea has become increasingly concerned about China’s military activities near the Korean Peninsula, including a growing number of Chinese warplanes flying near its airspace. In May, China’s newest and most-advanced aircraft carrier, the Fujian, conducted fighter jet drills in the Yellow Sea. China declared no-sail zones there while the drills were underway.

近年来，韩国已越来越担心中国在朝鲜半岛附近的军事活动，包括中国战机在离韩国领空不远的空域飞行频次越来越高。今年5月，中国最新、最先进的航母福建舰曾在黄海进行战斗机演习。演习期间，中国宣布该水域为禁航区。

“If China uses its structures in the West Sea for military purposes like monitoring, surveillance and disrupting sea routes and does so repeatedly and in an escalating scale, they will eventually threaten our jurisdiction in the West Sea,” said Chung Min-jeong, an analyst at the National Assembly Research Service​. “South Korea, the United States and Japan will need to cooperate if China uses the West Sea structures to help blockade Taiwan.”

“如果中国把它在西海（即黄海）的设施用于军事目的，比如监视、侦察以及扰乱海上航线，而且反复这样做，且规模不断扩大的话，最终将威胁我国在西海的管辖权，”韩国国会研究局的分析师郑珉正（音）说。“如果中国使用这些西海设施帮助封锁台湾的话，韩国、美国和日本将需要彼此合作。”

China installed its aquaculture structures inside the so-called Provisional Measures Zone, or PMZ, which was created by South Korea and China through a bilateral agreement in 2001 to manage their overlapping exclusive economic zone, or EEZ, claims in the Yellow Sea. The agreement allows fishing activities from both sides but does not mention aquaculture, “leaving an ambiguity that will make it difficult for Seoul to convince Beijing to remove the platforms,” according to the C.S.I.S. report.

中国将水产养殖设施部署在所谓的暂定措施水域（简称PMZ）。这是韩中两国在2001年通过一个双边协议设立的，旨在管理双方在黄海主张的专属经济区存在重叠的问题。协议允许两国在该区开展渔业捕捞活动，但没有明确涵盖水产养殖，“这种不明确将使韩国政府难以说服中国政府将这些平台挪走，”战略与国际研究中心的报告写道。

The first floating fish-farm cage — the Shen Lan 1, which is 200 feet in diameter — was installed in 2018, and the larger Shan Lan 2 was added last year. The former oil-drilling rig was moved there in 2022, repurposed into a central operations hub.

直径近60米的第一个浮动鱼塘“深蓝1号”是2018年安装的，去年又安装了一个更大的浮动鱼塘“深蓝2号”。退役的海上石油钻井平台是在2022年拖到那里的，已被改建为一个中央作业枢纽。

Tensions flared in February when a South Korean ocean survey vessel attempted an on-site investigation, only to be forcibly blocked by Chinese coast guard ships and civilian vessels. South Korea also deployed patrol ships in the two-hour standoff.

今年2月，韩国一艘海洋调查船试图进入现场调查时，曾受到中国海警船和民用船只的强行阻挡，导致紧张局势骤然升级。韩国在这次持续了两个小时的对峙中还派出了巡逻船。

In a report this month, South Korea’s Chosun Ilbo newspaper cited satellite imagery ​that it said showed China remodeling several retired oil rigs for use as offshore support facilities for fish farms.

韩国的《朝鲜日报》本月曾报道称，卫星图像显示中国正在将几个退役的海上石油钻井平台改造为用于鱼类养殖场的海上辅助设施。

In their resolution adopted on Monday, South Korean lawmakers ​proposed that if China does not remove its facilities, South Korea ​should take “proportional​” countermeasures, such as installing its own aquaculture facilities in the ​area and building a survey ship to increase monitoring of Chinese activities in the sea.

韩国议员在周一通过的决议中提出，如果中国不拆除这些设施的话，韩国应采取“相应”的对等措施，例如在该水域安装自己的水产养殖设施，以及为加强追踪中国在该海域的活动建造一艘调查船。