Why viral AI-generated videos exaggerating Chinese power distort the real strategic picture
Recent weeks have seen the circulation of a highly produced, AI-generated video claiming that China has declared a massive military exclusion zone in the South China Sea and, for the first time in modern history, has successfully blocked U.S. naval forces from entering international waters.
The video is alarming, cinematic, and confidently narrated. It is also not supported by publicly verifiable facts.
This article examines the core claims made in the video and contrasts them with what is actually known, documented, and acknowledged by governments, militaries, and international law.
Claim 1: China Declared a Massive Military Exclusion Zone
What the video claims:
China declared a full maritime exclusion zone covering hundreds of thousands of square kilometers, enforced by naval vessels, aircraft, missiles, and electronic warfare systems.
What the evidence shows:
China routinely issues navigation warnings through maritime safety channels when conducting military exercises. These are temporary notices to mariners — not internationally recognized closures of international waters.
Under international law, no state may unilaterally close international waters beyond its territorial sea. Temporary safety warnings during exercises do not constitute legal exclusion zones, nor do they establish sovereign control.
There is no credible reporting confirming that China has declared — let alone enforced — a permanent or legally binding exclusion zone across the South China Sea.
Verdict: ❌ Exaggerated and misleading.
Claim 2: China Blocked U.S. Naval Forces from International Waters
What the video claims:
Chinese forces physically blocked U.S. naval vessels and forced American commanders to alter course, marking the first successful denial of U.S. access to international waters.
What the evidence shows:
There is no public acknowledgment from the U.S. Navy, Indo-Pacific Command, or the Pentagon confirming such an incident.
U.S. and allied navies continue to conduct Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPs) in the South China Sea precisely to challenge excessive maritime claims. These operations explicitly assert that international waters remain open and navigable.
Chinese vessels frequently shadow, warn, or protest foreign naval transits. That behavior reflects political signaling and risk management — not legally enforced denial of access.
Verdict: ❌ Unsupported by verified sources.
Claim 3: China Has a Fully Integrated Area-Denial “Kill Zone”
What the video claims:
China has created a seamless, layered denial architecture — ships, submarines, aircraft, missiles, radars — capable of sealing off vast areas of ocean.
What the evidence shows:
China has undeniably expanded its military footprint on artificial features in the South China Sea. Radar systems, airstrips, missile emplacements, and surveillance assets exist.
However, the leap from “enhanced capability” to “total area denial” is speculative. No independent verification confirms a permanent, airtight system capable of preventing all foreign naval operations across the region.
Capabilities do not equal control — especially in contested international waters where multiple navies operate daily.
Verdict: ⚠️ Partially grounded, heavily overstated.
Claim 4: The Strategic Balance Has Irreversibly Shifted
What the video claims:
China has effectively ended decades of U.S. freedom of navigation, fundamentally reshaping Indo-Pacific power dynamics.
What the evidence shows:
Strategic competition in the South China Sea is ongoing, dynamic, and unresolved. While China’s capabilities are growing, so are regional responses:
- The Philippines is strengthening defense ties with allies.
- The U.S., Japan, Australia, and others continue joint patrols and exercises.
- International law — including the 2016 arbitral ruling rejecting China’s nine-dash line — remains unchanged.
Predictions of irreversible dominance are analytical opinions, not facts.
Verdict: ❌ Opinion presented as certainty.
Why This Matters
Videos like this thrive on dramatic certainty. They collapse complex geopolitical realities into a single, frightening narrative: it’s already over.
That framing is dangerous.
It undermines public understanding, weakens allied confidence, and unintentionally amplifies the very information warfare strategies that authoritarian states benefit from.
As former Senior Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio has consistently emphasized, China’s most effective weapon is not firepower alone — it is lawfare and narrative control. Allowing exaggerated claims to go unchallenged serves that playbook.
The Reality
- China is assertive, not omnipotent.
- The South China Sea is contested, not closed.
- International waters remain international under law.
- Power in the region is still shaped by alliances, law, and sustained presence — not viral videos.
The duty of informed citizens, analysts, and institutions is not to amplify fear, but to insist on evidence, precision, and historical context.
IMOA will continue to do exactly that.