Chinese aircraft joins Diaoyu Islands patrol
Source: Agencies |
December 14, 2012, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
A CHINESE marine surveillance plane has been sent to join vessels patrolling the territorial waters around the Diaoyu Islands.
The Y-12 plane arrived in the area at about 10am yesterday and conducted joint patrols with a fleet of four surveillance ships, according to a statement by the State Oceanic Administration.
The fleet ordered Japanese ships that had entered China's territorial waters to leave the area immediately, the statement said. It was the first time a Chinese airplane had flown above the small islands in the East China Sea.
Japan's military scrambled eight F-15 fighter jets, the Defense Ministry said, but the Chinese plane, a nonmilitary aircraft, was nowhere to be seen by the time they got there.
The Japanese Foreign Ministry said a formal protest was sent to the Chinese government through the embassy in Japan.
China brushed off the complaint, saying the flight by the Chinese aircraft was completely normal.
"I want to stress that these activities are completely normal. The Diaoyu and its affiliated islands are China's inherent territory since ancient times," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said. "China requires the Japanese side stop illegal activities in the waters and airspace of the Diaoyu Islands."
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda later instructed his government to be "all the more on guard," the Kyodo news agency reported.
Japanese ships have been patrolling the islands on the lookout for Chinese ships which have been darting in and out of the area in recent months.
The illegal purchase of the islands by the Japanese government in September from a so-called private owner set off anti-Japan rallies in China.
Some analysts say China-Japan tensions are at their highest in years. Japanese exports have tumbled since relations soured.
The incident comes just days before a Japanese election expected to return the Liberal Democratic Party to power with former prime minister Shinzo Abe at the helm.
Abe has vowed a tough stance in the islands dispute and has said that the ruling Democratic Party's mishandling of its diplomacy had "emboldened China."
Washington says it does not take a position on the sovereignty of the islands but claims they are covered by a 1960 security treaty obligating the US to come to Japan's aid if attacked.
US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell reiterated that yesterday.
"We are encouraging all sides to take appropriate steps so that there will be no misunderstanding or miscalculation that could trigger an environment that would be antithetical to peace and stability," he told reporters in Malaysia.
The Y-12 plane arrived in the area at about 10am yesterday and conducted joint patrols with a fleet of four surveillance ships, according to a statement by the State Oceanic Administration.
The fleet ordered Japanese ships that had entered China's territorial waters to leave the area immediately, the statement said. It was the first time a Chinese airplane had flown above the small islands in the East China Sea.
Japan's military scrambled eight F-15 fighter jets, the Defense Ministry said, but the Chinese plane, a nonmilitary aircraft, was nowhere to be seen by the time they got there.
The Japanese Foreign Ministry said a formal protest was sent to the Chinese government through the embassy in Japan.
China brushed off the complaint, saying the flight by the Chinese aircraft was completely normal.
"I want to stress that these activities are completely normal. The Diaoyu and its affiliated islands are China's inherent territory since ancient times," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said. "China requires the Japanese side stop illegal activities in the waters and airspace of the Diaoyu Islands."
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda later instructed his government to be "all the more on guard," the Kyodo news agency reported.
Japanese ships have been patrolling the islands on the lookout for Chinese ships which have been darting in and out of the area in recent months.
The illegal purchase of the islands by the Japanese government in September from a so-called private owner set off anti-Japan rallies in China.
Some analysts say China-Japan tensions are at their highest in years. Japanese exports have tumbled since relations soured.
The incident comes just days before a Japanese election expected to return the Liberal Democratic Party to power with former prime minister Shinzo Abe at the helm.
Abe has vowed a tough stance in the islands dispute and has said that the ruling Democratic Party's mishandling of its diplomacy had "emboldened China."
Washington says it does not take a position on the sovereignty of the islands but claims they are covered by a 1960 security treaty obligating the US to come to Japan's aid if attacked.
US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell reiterated that yesterday.
"We are encouraging all sides to take appropriate steps so that there will be no misunderstanding or miscalculation that could trigger an environment that would be antithetical to peace and stability," he told reporters in Malaysia.
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