Latest news with #SenkakuIslands
Japan Times
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Chinese aircraft carrier conducts fighter jet operations in East China Sea
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.
NHK
25-05-2025
- Politics
- NHK
Chinese fighter jets take off from, land on aircraft carrier off Senkaku Islands
Japan's Defense Ministry announced on Sunday that the Chinese Navy's aircraft carrier Liaoning sailed in the East China Sea off the coast of the Senkaku Islands in Okinawa Prefecture. The ministry says fighter jets took off from the carrier and landed on it. The ministry said Liaoning and four other ships were confirmed to be sailing in the ocean about 200 kilometers north of Kubashima Island at around 7 a.m. on Sunday. It said fighter jets and helicopters were confirmed taking off and landing on the Liaoning. The Japan Air Self-Defense Force scrambled fighter jets. There was no violation of Japan's airspace. This is the first time the defense ministry has announced takeoffs and landings of fighter jets using a Chinese aircraft carrier sailing in the East China Sea. The ministry said Japan is going through diplomatic channels to express interest in the recent stepped-up activities of the Chinese military. On May 3, a China Coast Guard helicopter violated Japan's territorial airspace around the Senkaku Islands, and the ministry continues surveillance in the area.
South China Morning Post
11-05-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Why Japan's coastguard has a recruitment problem
The Japanese coastguard continues to experience a manpower shortage as its ability to safeguard the country's sovereignty over disputed islands could be affected by the exit of hundreds of its staff. Advertisement A total of 389 people voluntarily resigned from the coastguard in 2024, according to a report in the Yomiuri newspaper, bringing its staff strength down to 14,123 as of the end of the financial year on March 31. The personnel who left were six fewer compared with the same period a year earlier, partly due to an aggressive recruitment campaign. But there are concerns that more may leave the service this year. Since 2013, the coastguard has been seeking to recruit more people to counter a rise in intrusions by Chinese vessels into waters around the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea. The islands are presently controlled by Japan , which refers to them as the Senkaku archipelago. 'The coastguard is facing a similar challenge to the Self-Defence Forces, although there are some differences,' said Garren Mulloy, a professor of international relations at Daito Bunka University and a specialist in military issues. Advertisement 'One of the most fundamental problems for the coastguard is that by its nature, personnel are away from friends and family for extended periods, which makes it less appealing as a career choice,' he told This Week in Asia.
Japan Times
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Escalation fears rise in Japan following Chinese moves near Senkakus
Concerns are growing in Tokyo after a Chinese government helicopter violated Japan's airspace around the Senkaku Islands, following a flight by a small Japanese civilian plane in the area and as Beijing sent government ships to the waters near the uninhabited islets in the East China Sea for more than 170 straight days. On May 3, a China Coast Guard helicopter entered Japan's territorial airspace around the Japanese-controlled, Chinese-claimed Senkaku Islands — marking just the fourth such incursion by a Chinese aircraft and first by a helicopter since the end of World War II. As of Saturday, the Chinese side also had sent government ships to the area for 173 consecutive days. On Friday, top lawmakers from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party expressed concerns that the latest moves by the Chinese side could set the stage for it to land helicopters or drones on the islands as it seeks to reinforce its claims to the Senkakus, which are known by Beijing as the Diaoyu islets. Hirofumi Nakasone, chairman of the LDP's Research Commission on Foreign Affairs, was quoted by local media as telling a meeting of lawmakers Friday that China's actions were 'significantly escalating' the situation, with Nakasone hinting that Beijing 'may be attempting to create a fait accompli' in terms of its claims to sovereignty over the islands by repeating incidents similar to the May 3 incursion. The Self-Defense Forces, in conjunction with the Japan Coast Guard, were believed to have been monitoring the situation near the Senkakus last week, and scrambled fighter jets following the incursion. Critics of that response, however, have said it was too little, too late, as the helicopter had already returned to the Chinese ship before the fighters arrived. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi speaks during a news conference at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Friday. | JIJI Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said earlier Friday that Beijing is 'persistently continuing its attempts to unilaterally alter the status quo by force' in the vicinity of the Senkakus. Nakatani reiterated the Japanese government's longstanding position that the Senkakus are an inherent part of Japan's territory, both historically and under international law, and Japan currently exercises effective control over them. 'Therefore, there is no territorial dispute over the Senkaku Islands that needs to be resolved,' Nakatani said. But while the Japanese side effectively controls the islands, which are also covered under Article 5 of the U.S.-Japan security treaty, China has simultaneously 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. Japan nationalized the Senkakus in 2012. The May 3 flight by a Japanese civilian plane has also complicated Tokyo's efforts to avoid stoking tensions, something that could play into China's hands — and its designs on the Senkakus. The small civilian plane flew near the islands just before the China Coast Guard launched its ship-borne helicopter, according to the Flightaware flight-tracking website. China's Defense Ministry claimed its decision to launch the helicopter was to expel the civilian plane, which it claimed was piloted by 'rightwing elements.' While Japanese aircraft operating inside the country's airspace is not subject to restrictions, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi stressed at a news conference Friday that such flights could trigger unforeseen contingencies and should be avoided amid the row with China. "'Considering that the purpose of the flight was sightseeing, we have conveyed to the operator that it should ensure safety and avoid unexpected consequences," Hayashi said. The Asahi Shimbun daily reported Saturday that both the Japanese and Chinese governments had known about the civilian flight beforehand and had taken steps to avoid any incidents in advance, with the Japanese side unsuccessfully asking the pilot to halt the flight. Beyond the helicopter incident, the China Coast Guard has also sent vessels — often large ships equipped with machine guns unlike Japan Coast Guard ships — to the waters around the Senkakus to further erode Tokyo's claim to the islets. The Chinese vessels usually demand that Japanese civilian fishermen leave the waters. Japan Coast Guard ships also maintain a strong presence in the area, often to protect Japanese fishermen and warn off Chinese government and fishing ships there.
