The Japanese navy sighted two Chinese aircraft carriers conducting simultaneous operations in the Pacific for the first time in a move signalling Beijing’s intention to expand its blue water capabilities.
Liaoning and Shandong were seen operating in separate areas of the Pacific Ocean over the weekend, the Japanese defence ministry said on Tuesday.
The Shandong strike group was seen carrying out what appeared to be take-off and landing operations of its fighter jets and helicopters about 500km southwest of Iwo Jima and north of Okinotori. The Liaoning group was found 300km southwest of Minamitori Island on Saturday and a little further away on Sunday. It was also operating its air wings.
The carriers were seen in blue waters beyond Japan’s second chain islands. Seen as the second line of defence in the event of a military escalation by China in the region, the chain comprises a strategic group of islands in the middle of the West Pacific, including a US military base in Guam, around 2,700km from Taiwan.
The Japanese military said they dispatched warships and aircraft to monitor the Chinese operations in the region.
“Japan's prompt disclosure of information concerning the carriers underscores its commitment to deter any forceful, unilateral shifts in the regional status quo," defence minister Gen Nakatani told a press conference.
Stopping short of criticising Beijing, the minister said Japan had engaged with China to ensure its operations in the international waters did not pose any threat to his country’s security.
Mr Nakatani said Japan was pursuing a buildup of air defences in the Pacific region and was closely monitoring the movements of Chinese naval vessels.
One of the carriers seen on Saturday, Liaoning, was accompanied by guided missile destroyers Wuxi and Tangshan as well as the fast combat support ship Hulunhu, the South China Morning Post reported.
Japan previously claimed that Liaoning had sailed within its exclusive economic zone near Minamitorishima, a remote island east of Iwo Jima.
Responding to Japan’s statement, the Chinese foreign ministry defended the presence of its aircraft carriers in the area and said Beijing’s activities were consistent with international law and practice. “China has always pursued a defensive national defence policy and hopes that the Japanese side will look at the matter objectively and rationally," Lin Jian, foreign ministry spokesperson, said at a news briefing.
China has been increasing its presence in East Asian waters since May by sending an unusually large number of naval and coast guard vessels to the region. At the same time, it has been conducting daily military drills in the Taiwan Strait, in what critics have called staging exercises of a military escalation against the self-governed island.
