Japanese and South Korean military aircraft flew through disputed airspace over the East China Sea without informing China, officials said yesterday, challenging a new Chinese air zone that has increased regional tensions and sparked concerns of an unintended clash.
The move came after Tokyo’s close ally Washington defied China’s demand that airplanes flying through its unilaterally announced zone identify themselves to Chinese authorities, flying two unarmed B-52s over the islands on Tuesday without informing Beijing.
Tensions have ratcheted up since Beijing’s announcement on Saturday of the air defense identification zone (ADIZ) that includes the skies over islands at the heart of a feud between Japan and China, and its demand that planes flying in the area notify Chinese authorities.
Japan and the US have sharply criticized the move, which some experts said was aimed not only at chipping away at Tokyo’s control of the islands, known as the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu (釣魚) in China, but also at challenging US dominance in the region. Taiwan also claims the islands, which it calls the Diaoyutais (釣魚台).
The US does not take a position on the sovereignty of the islands, but recognizes Tokyo’s administrative control and has assured Japan that a bilateral security agreement covers them.
The developments are expected to dominate US Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to Japan, China and South Korea next week.
China yesterday also rejected South Korea’s demand for the repeal of the zone, but appeared to soften its demand that commercial aircraft tell its military authorities of any plans to transit the area. Japan’s two biggest airlines have already begun defying that order.
“The East China Sea air defense identification zone is not aimed at normal international flights. We hope that relevant countries’ airlines can proactively cooperate, so there is more order and safety for flights,” Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Qin Gang (秦剛) told reporters.
Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said naval ships and patrol planes have been operating in the East China Sea and would continue to do so.
“They are carrying out surveillance activity as before in the East China Sea, including the zone,” Suga told a news conference, adding there has been no particular response from China. “We are not going to change this [activity] out of consideration to China.”
A South Korean official also said a navy reconnaissance plane had flown over a submerged rock in the area claimed by both Beijing and Seoul, and that the flights would continue.
The rock, called Ieodo in South Korea and the Suyan Rock (苏岩礁) in China, is controlled by Seoul.
Asked about the South Korean flight, Qin only said that Beijing was aware of it.
South Korea’s reaction to Beijing’s weekend declaration had been somewhat muted, reflecting its efforts to forge closer ties with China and a chill in relations with Japan.
However, South Korean Vice Defense Minister Baek Seung-joo yesterday told a senior Chinese military official that the move to impose the new rules created military tension in the region and called on Beijing to rectify the zone
“The Chinese reaction was that they will not be accepting the [South] Korean side’s demand,” South Korean defense ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok told reporters after talks between Baek and Wang Guanzhong (王冠中), deputy chief of general staff of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.
The Philippines also rejected China’s newly declared air defense zone in the East China Sea as infringing on the freedom to fly in international airspace and compromising the safety of civil aviation.
Philippine foreign affairs spokesman Raul Hernandez said China’s ADIZ threatens the national security of affected states and “transforms the entire air zone” into China’s “domestic airspace.”
Super Typhoon Kong-rey is the largest cyclone to impact Taiwan in 27 years, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. Kong-rey’s radius of maximum wind (RMW) — the distance between the center of a cyclone and its band of strongest winds — has expanded to 320km, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張竣堯) said. The last time a typhoon of comparable strength with an RMW larger than 300km made landfall in Taiwan was Typhoon Herb in 1996, he said. Herb made landfall between Keelung and Suao (蘇澳) in Yilan County with an RMW of 350km, Chang said. The weather station in Alishan (阿里山) recorded 1.09m of
STORM’S PATH: Kong-Rey could be the first typhoon to make landfall in Taiwan in November since Gilda in 1967. Taitung-Green Island ferry services have been halted Tropical Storm Kong-rey is forecast to strengthen into a typhoon early today and could make landfall in Taitung County between late Thursday and early Friday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, Kong-Rey was 1,030km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), the nation’s southernmost point, and was moving west at 7kph. The tropical storm was packing maximum sustained winds of 101kph, with gusts of up to 126 kph, CWA data showed. After landing in Taitung, the eye of the storm is forecast to move into the Taiwan Strait through central Taiwan on Friday morning, the agency said. With the storm moving
NO WORK, CLASS: President William Lai urged people in the eastern, southern and northern parts of the country to be on alert, with Typhoon Kong-rey approaching Typhoon Kong-rey is expected to make landfall on Taiwan’s east coast today, with work and classes canceled nationwide. Packing gusts of nearly 300kph, the storm yesterday intensified into a typhoon and was expected to gain even more strength before hitting Taitung County, the US Navy’s Joint Typhoon Warning Center said. The storm is forecast to cross Taiwan’s south, enter the Taiwan Strait and head toward China, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The CWA labeled the storm a “strong typhoon,” the most powerful on its scale. Up to 1.2m of rainfall was expected in mountainous areas of eastern Taiwan and destructive winds are likely
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday at 5:30pm issued a sea warning for Typhoon Kong-rey as the storm drew closer to the east coast. As of 8pm yesterday, the storm was 670km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) and traveling northwest at 12kph to 16kph. It was packing maximum sustained winds of 162kph and gusts of up to 198kph, the CWA said. A land warning might be issued this morning for the storm, which is expected to have the strongest impact on Taiwan from tonight to early Friday morning, the agency said. Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) and Green Island (綠島) canceled classes and work
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