For over 40 years, Capt. Efraín Hallax, 73, has been steering vessels through the canal, and he has seen it all, from a dictator’s fall to the rise of U.S. interest in retaking the waterway.

© Nathalia Angarita for The New York Times

Ukrainian Navy officers and business owners in the port city pondered what Kyiv could gain from a truce after it pushed back Russian vessels and resumed commercial shipping.

© Brendan Hoffman for The New York Times

The barges, which link up to form a bridge, could give China a way to land large numbers of vehicles and troops on Taiwan, solving a major logistical problem.

The unusual deployment by three navy ships over the past month has prompted a debate in Australia about its aging fleet and reliance on the United States.

A new proposal would impose steep levies on Chinese-made ships arriving at U.S. ports, threatening to increase costs for imports.

The vessels were sailing in the Tasman Sea, and their announced intent to perform exercises prompted a call for commercial flights to divert course.