Chinese aircraft carrier conducts fighter jet operations in East China Sea

Japan Times

26-05-2025

Japan's Defense Ministry has announced for the first time that China sent its Liaoning aircraft carrier into the East China Sea, some 200 kilometers from the Japanese-administered Senkaku Islands, for practice deploying fighter jets.
The Defense Ministry's Joint Staff Office said in a statement late Sunday that the Chinese carrier was sailing alongside four destroyers in the waters north of Kuba Island in the Senkaku chain, which is also claimed by Beijing, where the islets are known as the Diaoyu.
The Liaoning was conducting take-off and landing operations involving both fighter jets and helicopters Sunday, the ministry said, adding that Air Self-Defense fighters had been scrambled in response, though there were no reported violations of Japanese airspace.
The Japanese Defense Ministry has previously announced training involving the Liaoning and other Chinese warships in the Pacific Ocean, but this is the first known instance of the carrier doing so in the East China Sea.
Japan nationalized the Senkakus in 2012 and has also agreed with the United States that they are covered under Article 5 of the U.S.-Japan security treaty, which obliges the U.S. to defend Japanese territories.
But while the Japanese side effectively controls the islands, China has worked to establish a track record of 'law enforcement' activities around the Senkakus as part of a concerted effort to press its claim to the area, which is rich in fish stocks and is also believed to be home to oil and gas deposits.
Concerns in Tokyo have surged after a China Coast Guard helicopter violated Japan's territorial airspace around the Senkakus earlier this month, following a flight by a small Japanese civilian plane in the area. This was just the fourth such incursion into Japanese airspace by a Chinese aircraft and the first by a helicopter.
That comes in addition to the continued presence of Chinese government ships in the waters. As of Monday, China has sent government vessels to the area for 189 straight days. Last year, Beijing sent ships around the Senkakus for a record 355 days.
The moves around the Senkakus, however, have been just a part of China's push to flex its military muscle in the area in recent months — moves that have ratcheted up tensions between the neighbors.
Last September, the Liaoning entered Japan's contiguous waters for the first time. Those waters extend up to 24 nautical miles (44 km) from Japan's coastline, where it can take certain measures under international law. This followed the first foray into Japanese airspace by a Chinese military aircraft. Beijing later claimed that the aircraft incursion was accidental.
Meanwhile, Chinese state-run media said that the country's third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, is holding intensive sea trials, with experts saying that the vessel is expected to test its electromagnetic catapult technology before its eventual commissioning.
The carrier's new aircraft launching system will enable it to significantly increase its daily sortie rate, greatly enhancing its ability to seize air and maritime supremacy, Cao Weidong, a Chinese military affairs expert, was quoted by state-run broadcaster CCTV as saying.