OAN’s Elizabeth Volberding
11:10 AM – Tuesday, February 13, 2024
Chinese coast guard vessels have been cruising by Japanese territorials seas in the East China Sea for weeks, and in recent days, Chinese warships have been approaching Japan’s southwestern islands, according to Japanese officials.
On Thursday, for the 49th consecutive day, a fleet of four Chinese coast guard vessels passed just outside of the territorial waters of islands under Japanese control, which Beijing is also in ownership of, according to the Japanese Coast Guard.
It cautioned China’s ships not to approach the islands, which Beijing refers to as the Diaoyu, and the Japanese refers to as the Senkaku. On Tuesday, China’s Coast Guard admitted that it was tracking the waters near the Taiwan-claimed Diaoyu Islands.
China regularly launches coast guard ships and aircraft into the surrounding waters and airspace of the islands in an attempt to harass nearby Japanese vessels and provoke Japan to scramble fighter jets in retaliation.
Last month, Japan Coast Guard Commandant Shohei Ishii stated that the “situation is extremely serious and is unpredictable” and that Chinese Coast Guard activity infiltrating Japanese territorial waters disobeys international law.
Tokyo has greatly confirmed its defense of southwest Japan in recent years, especially around Okinawa and its outer islands, which are strategically important to Japanese defense against China’s increasing assertiveness and tension surrounding Taiwan, an autonomous island that Beijing claims is its territory.
The Defense Ministry of Japan reported that, since the previous week, it has seen Chinese warships off the coast of Okinawa on multiple occasions.
When a Chinese guided missile destroyer and frigate moved southward across the waters between Okinawa and the Miyako islands on February 1st, a Japanese Self Defense Force warship and reconnaissance aircraft were dispatched.
A reconnaissance ship sailed through the area to the north on Saturday. The Chinese reconnaissance ship then surfaced in the waters once more on Sunday, according to the ministry.
Additionally, according to the ministry, the guided missile destroyer and the frigate were seen on Monday as they crossed the waters between Okinawa and Miyako.
China’s maritime activities, particularly its joint military drills with Russia near Japan’s coasts, have Japan growing more concerned. In December 2022, Japan approved a new security plan that includes accelerating the development of long-range cruise missiles capable of striking North Korean and Chinese targets.
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