China is escalating its activities not only in the South China Sea but also in the vicinity of the Senkaku Islands in Okinawa Prefecture in the East China Sea.
Chinese government ships entered the contiguous zone around the islands for 92 consecutive days until May 14, exceeding last year's record-high 64 consecutive days. Then in a highly unusual move, the Chinese ships approached a Japanese fishing boat and followed it.
On July 4 and 5, Chinese government ships once again intruded into Japanese territorial waters -- that time for over 39 hours, the longest time they have continued an intrusion.
Then on Tuesday, four Chinese ships entered Japanese waters one after another.
The Japanese government said in its defense white paper released Tuesday, "[China is] persistently continuing to unilaterally change the status quo, and there is strong concern." It used the expression "persistently" for the first time in the white paper and severely criticized China's actions.
Last year, a record-high total 1,097 Chinese government ships were spotted in the contiguous zone around the Senkaku Islands. As of July 12, the number of such vessels has already reached 652 this year, surpassing last year's figure.
"China's attempts to unilaterally change the existing order have been made in various places, and it is necessary to fully understand China's intention," Defense Minister Taro Kono told a news conference Tuesday, showing a sense of caution.
Regarding the objectives of China, the white paper said the country "intends to reduce alertness through the 'normalization' of such activities."
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said at a regular news conference Tuesday that China had lodged a protest against the Japanese government, criticizing the white paper as "full of prejudice and false information about China."
Some observers say China's aggressive moves are a reflection of its confidence in its maritime war capability. According to the white paper, China has 67 modern destroyers and frigates, while Japan only has 48 destroyers.
As a countermeasure, the Defense Ministry has deployed surface-to-air and surface-to-ship missile units on Amami-Oshima island in Kagoshima Prefecture and Miyako Island in Okinawa Prefecture to strengthen the defense capability of Japan's southwestern island areas.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
