Japan sees 1st simultaneous operations by China carriers in Pacific
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan confirmed for the first time two Chinese aircraft carriers operating simultaneously in the Pacific, as the government said Monday it has spotted the Shandong near Japan's southernmost Okinotori island, a move further fueling Tokyo's concerns over Beijing's military activities.
The announcement came a day after the Defense Ministry said the Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning was observed in the vicinity of Japan's easternmost Minamitori Island in the Pacific for two days from Saturday, the first confirmed navigation by a Chinese carrier in those waters.
Together with four vessels including a missile destroyer, the Shandong was sailing through waters 550 kilometers southeast of Miyako Island in the southern prefecture of Okinawa on Saturday around 1 p.m., according to the ministry.
On Monday, the Shandong, commissioned in 2019 as China's second aircraft carrier, conducted landing and takeoff drills involving its fighter jets and helicopters north of the Okinotori, some 1,700 km south of Tokyo, within Japan's exclusive economic zone, the ministry said.
Meanwhile, the Liaoning, along with two destroyers and another vessel, was seen in waters about 300 km southwest of Minamitori, which is approximately 1,900 km southeast of Tokyo, at around 6 p.m. Saturday, according to the ministry. The area lies within Japan's EEZ.
The Liaoning then moved southwest and conducted landing and takeoff drills with its fighter jets and helicopters on Sunday outside the EEZ.
The Liaoning was observed beyond what is known as the "second island chain" stretching from Japan's Izu Islands to Guam, a Japanese government official said. China considers the chain its defense line.
Following the Liaoning's move, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said earlier Monday that Japan will continue to closely monitor China's growing maritime activity and step up surveillance, saying that China apparently intends to "enhance its capability to carry out missions at sea and in the skies farther away" from its shores.
"We will do our utmost to perform our warning and surveillance duties at sea and in the air," Hayashi, the top government spokesman, told a regular press conference, adding Japan has conveyed its position to China regarding the latest development.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian defended the aircraft carrier's activities, saying at a press conference Monday that they are "fully consistent with international law and international practices."
Lin said China pursues a national policy that is "defensive in nature," expressing hope that Japan will view its activities "objectively and rationally."
Commissioned in 2012 as China's first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning is a refurbished Soviet-made vessel purchased from Ukraine in the late 1990s and features a "ski-jump" takeoff ramp.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Asahi Shimbun
28 minutes ago
- Asahi Shimbun
The U.S. and China are holding trade talks in London after Trump's phone call with Xi
Stacked containers are seen at the Yangluo Port on the Yangtze River in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, May 23, 2025. (AP Photo) LONDON--High-level delegations from the United States and China met in London on Monday to try and shore up a fragile truce in a trade dispute that has roiled the global economy, A Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier He Lifeng held talks with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer at Lancaster House, an ornate 200-year-old mansion near Buckingham Palace. Wang Wentao, China's commerce minister, also was part of Beijing's delegation. The talks, which may continue Tuesday, follow negotiations in Geneva last month that brought a temporary respite in the trade war. The two countries announced May 12 they had agreed to a 90-day suspension of most of the 100%-plus tariffs they had imposed on each other in an escalating trade war that had sparked fears of recession. The U.S. and China are the world's biggest and second-biggest economies. Chinese trade data shows that exports to the United States fell 35% in May from a year earlier. Since the Geneva talks, the U.S. and China have exchanged angry words over advanced semiconductors that power artificial intelligence, visas for Chinese students at American universities and 'rare earth' minerals that are vital to carmakers and other industries. President Donald Trump spoke at length with Chinese leader Xi Jinping by phone last Thursday in an attempt to put relations back on track. Trump announced on social media the following day that the trade talks would resume in London. Rare earths were expected to be a focus of the talks. The Chinese government started requiring producers to obtain a license to export seven rare earth elements in April. Resulting shortages sent automakers worldwide into a tizzy. As stockpiles ran down, some worried they would have to halt production. Beijing indicated Saturday that it is addressing the concerns, which have come from European companies as well as U.S. firms. Kevin Hassett, a U.S. economic adviser, told CNBC on Monday that he expected a short meeting with 'a big, strong handshake' on rare earths. The U.K. government says it is providing the venue and logistics but is not involved in the talks, though British Treasury chief Rachel Reeves met with both Bessent and He on Sunday, and U.K. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds was due to meet Wang. 'We are a nation that champions free trade and have always been clear that a trade war is in nobody's interests, so we welcome these talks,' the British government said in a statement.
Nikkei Asia
an hour ago
- Nikkei Asia
Japan's Lawson aims to expand in China and Southeast Asia
TOKYO -- Japanese convenience store group Lawson plans to open over 5,000 new outlets in China over the next six years, an increase of about 80%, as it accelerates its push beyond its home market and deeper into the rest of Asia. The retailer, which marks its 50th anniversary on Saturday, has set a target of increasing its store count in China to 12,000 by the fiscal year ending February 2031. The expansion is key to meeting its goal, reported in April, of doubling its overseas store count to approximately 14,000 shops over the next six years, to roughly match the number in its home market.
Yomiuri Shimbun
an hour ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Ukraine Says Russia Launched the Biggest Overnight Drone Bombardment of the War
AP Ukrainian soldiers walk though human corridor with people holding photos of their missed relatives after returning from captivity after a POWs exchange between Russia and Ukraine, in Chernyhiv region, Ukraine, Monday, June 9, 2025. KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched almost 500 drones at Ukraine in the biggest overnight drone bombardment of the three-year war, the Ukrainian air force said Monday, as the Kremlin presses its summer offensive amid direct peace talks that have yet to deliver progress on stopping the fighting. Despite the difficulties in reaching a ceasefire, Russia and Ukraine swapped another batch of prisoners of war Monday. In addition to the 479 drones, 20 missiles of various types were fired at different parts of Ukraine from Sunday to Monday, according to the air force, which said the barrage targeted mainly central and western areas. Ukraine's air force said its air defenses intercepted and destroyed 277 drones and 19 missiles, claiming only 10 drones or missiles hit their targets. Officials said one person was injured. It was not possible to independently verify the claims. A recent escalation in aerial attacks has coincided with a renewed Russian battlefield push along eastern and northeastern parts of the roughly 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said late Sunday that in some of those areas, 'the situation is very difficult.' He provided no details. Ukraine is short-handed on the front line against its bigger enemy and needs more military support from its Western partners, especially air defenses. But uncertainty about the U.S. policy on the war has fueled doubts about how much help Kyiv can count on. Ukraine has produced some stunning counter-punches, however. Its June 1 drone attack on distant Russian air bases was unprecedented in its scope and sophistication. Russia intensifies its attacks The Ukrainian General Staff said special operations forces struck two Russian fighter jets stationed at the Savasleyka airfield in Russia's Nizhny Novgorod region located about 650 kilometers (about 400 miles) northeast of the Ukrainian border. The statement did not say how the planes were hit and there was no immediate comment on the claim from Russian authorities. Some Russian war bloggers said there was no damage to the warplanes. Russian officials have said the recent intensified assaults are part of a series of retaliatory strikes for Ukraine's drone attack on air bases that were hosting nuclear-capable strategic bombers. A strike on a Ukrainian air base in Dubno, in the western Rivne region, was one such response, the Russian Defense Ministry said Monday. Two recent rounds of direct peace talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul have yielded no significant breakthroughs beyond pledges to swap prisoners as well as thousands of their dead and seriously wounded troops. Russian President Vladimir Putin has indicated he will keep fighting until his conditions are met. Russia and Ukraine exchange more POWs The exchange of hundreds of soldiers and civilians has been a small sign of cooperation in otherwise failed efforts to agree on a ceasefire. More prisoners were swapped Monday in a staggered process taking place over the coming days, Zelenskyy and the Russian Defense Ministry said, although neither side said how many. Those who were swapped included wounded soldiers, as well as those under 25, Zelenskyy said. 'The process is quite complicated, there are many sensitive details, negotiations continue virtually every day,' he added. In the Chernihiv region of northern Ukraine, dozens of anxious relatives gathered outside a hospital and formed a human corridor to see whether their loved ones were among those freed. Many held up photos of sons, husbands and brothers in hopes that someone might recognize them and offer any news. One by one, the returning soldiers passed silently through the corridor, their expressions a mixture of joy and exhaustion. Many in the crowd hadn't received official word on their loved ones for months, and some of them for years. Tetiana Lytvyn, 38, of Chernihiv, was among those waiting. She wasn't looking for one person, but two — her father and a cousin, both of whom went missing last year. 'The war might end,' she added, 'but for those of us with family still missing — the war will never be over until they come home.' Lytvyn's cousin, 21-year-old Mykola Dmytruk, disappeared while his wife was pregnant. 'He has a daughter now,' she said. 'She's 5 months old.' The Ukrainian POWs were in poor health, said Petro Yatsenko, spokesperson for Ukraine's official body overseeing prisoners. They lacked food during their imprisonment and had no access to medical care, he said. More than 200 Ukrainian POWs have died in prison since Russia's full-scale invasion of its neighbor, an Associated Press report published last month found. Russia and Ukraine have disagreed over the transfer of the bodies of soldiers killed in action. The Russian Defense Ministry alleged Ukraine failed to pick up the bodies of its fallen soldiers that Russia made available for collection over the weekend. But Zelenskyy claimed that Moscow hadn't sent to Kyiv the names of more than 1,000 Ukrainians whose bodies are in Russian-controlled territories as had been agreed. He accused Russian authorities of playing 'dirty' games. Even so, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the swap is expected to go ahead, although he said there were no specific arrangements so far for the transfer. Ukraine's intelligence chief, Kyrylo Budanov, said the exchange of bodies will begin this week. Long-range drone attacks continue Russia has repeatedly targeted civilian areas of Ukraine with Shahed drones during the war, as happened on Sunday night. The attacks have killed more than 12,000 Ukrainian civilians, according to the United Nations. Russia says it only attacks military targets. Ukraine has developed long-range drones that continue to strike deep inside Russia. Russia's Defense Ministry said it shot down 49 Ukrainian drones overnight over seven Russian regions. Two drones hit a plant specializing in electronic warfare equipment in the Chuvashia region, located more than 600 kilometers (370 miles) east of Moscow, local officials reported.
