China blaming Japan for fighter jet incidents is ‘unacceptable': Tokyo
Japan says recent Chinese military activities in the Pacific reveal its intent to improve operational capacity in remote areas. PHOTO: AFP
TOKYO - Tokyo's defence minister said on June 13 it was 'unacceptable' for China to blame Japan for close encounters between their military planes over the Pacific high seas last weekend.
Japan says recent Chinese military activities in the Pacific – where Beijing's two operating aircraft carriers were sighted simultaneously for the first time – reveal its intent to improve operational capacity in remote areas.
Chinese officials have hit back, calling the carrier outings routine training.
Japanese forces must 'through warning and surveillance show Japan's will and capability to deter any attempt of changing the status quo by force unilaterally', the defence minister Gen Nakatani told reporters on June 13 .
Japan says Chinese fighter jets from the Shandong aircraft carrier flew 'unusually close' – within 45m – to a Japanese military patrol plane on June 7 and 8 .
Also on June 8 , the Chinese jets cut across airspace in front of the Japanese plane at a distance that the patrol aircraft could reach within seconds, Tokyo says.
On June 12 , Beijing offered its own explanation.
'The root cause of the risk to maritime and air security was the close reconnaissance of China's normal military activities by a Japanese warplane,' said foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian.
'The Chinese side urges the Japanese side to stop this kind of dangerous behaviour,' he added.
And on Friday, Beijing said it had 'already stated' its stance.
'China has also maintained communication with Japan through diplomatic channels and made clear China's solemn position,' Mr Lin said.
Mr Nakatani said June 13 that 'Chinese statements portraying Japan as the cause of the latest incident are unacceptable'.
Japanese military planes 'never approach another plane as close as 45m', he said. AFP
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
24 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Protests could be ‘unprecedented' in LA, where marines are guarding federal building
Protests on June 13 appeared to be scattered and relatively muted. PHOTO: AFP Protests could be 'unprecedented' in LA, where marines are guarding federal building With a surge of demonstrations against the Trump administration's crackdown on immigration expected on June 14, authorities in Los Angeles said they were bracing for a turnout that 'may be unprecedented' in the city that has been the epicentre of days of sustained protests. In a news conference on June 13, the city's police chief Jim McDonnell said that his agency was 'fully prepared' and that officers would be focused on balancing a need to 'protect public safety while safeguarding every individual's right to protest peacefully.' As activists and law enforcement agencies across the country appeared to focus their energy on mobilising on June 14, Marines took over guard duty on June 13 at a federal office building in Los Angeles. The step further entangled the US military in the Trump administration's response to protests over the deportation of immigrants. One man was briefly detained on June 13 outside the office building, after he tried to duck under yellow caution tape to reach the Veterans Affairs office. Protests on June 13 appeared to be scattered and relatively muted in anticipation of demonstrations set to take place over the weekend. June 14 could be the biggest day of activism since protests began last week in response to a raid by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Los Angeles. The protests, which organisers have called the 'No Kings' demonstrations, are being planned in all 50 states. The collective action coincides with a military parade in Washington celebrating the Army's 250th anniversary and President Donald Trump's 79th birthday. In the news conference on June 13, law enforcement officials in Los Angeles explicitly affirmed the right to protest under the First Amendment, distinguishing between peaceful protesters and disruptive agitators. It was a contrast from Mr Trump, who had said anyone seeking to protest the military parade in Washington would be met with 'very big force.' 'It's a good cause,' said Mr Robert G. Luna, the Los Angeles County sheriff. 'But we do not want violent agitators out there destroying property or committing acts of violence.' Here is what else to know: Man detained: The man identified himself to reporters as Marcos Leao, 27, and said he was an Army veteran. He had tried to duck under yellow caution tape to reach the Veterans Affairs office in the building, he said, and was undisturbed by his brief detention. 'They treated me very fairly.' Newark unrest: Dozens of law enforcement officials entered a private immigration detention centre in Newark, New Jersey, on June 12 after reports of a disturbance inside. Senator handcuffed: Mr Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., was forcibly removed and handcuffed on June 12 after disrupting a news conference being held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Democratic senators, House members and governors rushed to denounce Padilla's treatment. NYTIMES Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
26 minutes ago
- Straits Times
US courts now a high-risk venue for immigrants
Protestes waving Mexican and US flags face off with police during a protest in downtown Los Angeles, on June 9. PHOTO: AFP HOUSTON - Minutes after an immigration judge rejected his asylum case earlier this week, Oscar Gato Sanchez was arrested as he exited a federal courthouse in Houston. 'I'm a Cuban citizen unjustly arrested,' he told AFP as plainclothes officers led him away on June 9. His aunt Ms Olaidys Sanchez, a 54-year-old legal resident of the United States, sobbed against a nearby wall. Her nephew was placed in an unmarked gray vehicle that took off with sirens blaring, heading towards an immigrant detention center in Conroe, about 80 kilometers north of Houston, according to official documents. Gato Sanchez is now among dozens of migrants detained there, awaiting deportation. In recent weeks, there has been an uptick of immigration enforcement operations at courthouses, as thousands of migrants pursue the asylum process by attending hearings. Agents from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) enter the court facilities unidentified, migrant advocates say, and those who do wear badges often cover their faces. Since President Donald Trump returned to power in January, ICE has been authorised to conduct enforcement activities in courts. AFP journalists have also witnessed arrests at courthouses in New York. In late May, US media published footage from a court in San Antonio, Texas, where a woman who had just been arrested cried out to ask anyone in earshot to pick up her children from school. Meanwhile, a young boy tried to comfort his mother as they were loaded into a vehicle to be taken away. Gato Sanchez entered the United States in December 2023. Like many other migrants, he turned himself in to authorities after arriving and was freed on condition that he appear in court at a later date. He filed an aslyum petition in May 2024 and went on Monday to the Houston court, where a date was to be set for a hearing on his case. Instead, a judge rejected the petition, after a public prosecutor said it was 'no longer in the best interest of the government,' said Ms Bianca Santorini, a lawyer who began representing Sanchez immediately after his arrest. 'If you're here without legal status, as soon as your case gets dismissed, the case doesn't exist anymore, the asylum application doesn't exist anymore,' she told AFP. 'So as soon as he walks out, he's here with nothing pending,' and it's at that vulnerable moment that the arrest occurs, she added. Ms Santorini believes ICE now has informants inside the courtroom. 'They're not walking to every person who walks out of court and saying 'let me see your paperwork, let me see what happened.' They already know when people walk out of court what happened,' she said. Even though he had an aslum applicaiton pending, Gato Sanchez will not get his day in court, despite the Constitution guaranteeing such a right, she added. 'It doesn't guarantee you'll win. It doesn't guarantee you get to stay, but it guarantees you have a day in court. Give me the day in court,' she said. The majority of immigrants present themselves in court in good faith, said Mr Cesar Espinosa, executive director of the immigrant-rights organisation FIEL. 'Most of these people are following some sort of law, whether it's asylum law or even showing up to court. They're here trying to do the right thing, to try to see if they can fight their case,' he said. In Los Angeles, an ICE operation targeting undocumented workers outside a home improvement store set off demonstrations and clashes that resulted in Mr Trump's controversial decision to send in the US National Guard and Marines. Mr Espinosa said some Americans had welcomed the anti-immigrant raids and complained about the people being detained. 'But when they're serving us, when they are being the backbone of our economy, nobody complains,' he said. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Business Times
an hour ago
- Business Times
Trump said Nippon-US Steel deal has resolvable national security risk
US PRESIDENT Donald Trump said on Friday (Jun 13) that concerns over national security risks posed by Nippon Steel's US$14.9 billion bid for US Steel can be resolved if the companies fulfill certain conditions that his administration has laid out, paving the way for the deal's approval. Shares of US Steel rose 3.5 per cent on the news in after-the-bell trading as investors bet the deal was close to done. Trump, in an executive order, said conditions for resolving the national security concerns would be laid out in an agreement, without providing details. 'I additionally find that the threatened impairment to the national security of the United States arising as a result of the Proposed Transaction can be adequately mitigated if the conditions set forth in section 3 of this order are met,' Trump said in the order, which was released by the White House. The companies thanked Trump in a press release, saying the agreement includes US$11 billion in new investments to be made by 2028 and governance commitments including a golden share to be issued to the US government. They did not detail how much control the golden share would give the US. Shares of US Steel had dipped earlier on Friday after a Nippon Steel executive told the Japanese Nikkei newspaper that its planned takeover of US Steel required 'a degree of management freedom' to go ahead after Trump earlier had said the US would be in control with a golden share. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up The bid, first announced by Nippon Steel in December 2023, has faced opposition from the start. Both Democratic former President Joe Biden and Trump, a Republican, asserted last year that US Steel should remain US-owned, as they sought to woo voters ahead of the presidential election in Pennsylvania, where the company is headquartered. Biden in January, shortly before leaving office, blocked the deal on national security grounds, prompting lawsuits by the companies, which argued the national security review they received was biased. The Biden White House disputed the charge. The steel companies saw a new opportunity in the Trump administration, which began on Jan 20 and opened a fresh 45-day national security review into the proposed merger in April. But Trump's public comments, ranging from welcoming a simple 'investment' in US Steel by the Japanese firm to floating a minority stake for Nippon Steel, spurred confusion. At a rally in Pennsylvania on May 30, Trump lauded an agreement between the companies and said Nippon Steel would make a 'great partner' for US Steel. But he later told reporters the deal still lacked his final approval, leaving unresolved whether he would allow Nippon Steel to take ownership. Nippon Steel and the Trump administration asked a US appeals court on Jun 5 for an eight-day extension of a pause in litigation to give them more time to reach a deal for the Japanese firm. The pause expires Friday, but could be extended. Jun 18 is the expiration date of the current acquisition contract between Nippon Steel and US Steel, but the firms could agree to postpone that date. REUTERS
