A Chinese aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, was reported to have sailed into Japan’s contiguous waters for the first time on Wednesday, accompanied by two destroyers. The vessel traversed between Yonaguni, Japan’s westernmost island, and Iriomote, prompting Tokyo to express its “serious concerns” to Beijing regarding China’s increasingly bold military activities in the region, according to officials from the Defense Ministry. The contiguous zone the carrier entered is an area of sea beyond a country’s territorial waters where some control over maritime traffic can still be exercised, extending up to 24 nautical miles offshore.
The Liaoning’s movement was part of a fleet activity on Tuesday and Wednesday, during which Chinese warships also traveled along the western coast of the disputed Japanese-controlled islets known as the Senkakus by Japan and the Diaoyus by China. Japan’s Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary, Hiroshi Moriya, described the incident as “absolutely unacceptable” in terms of national and regional security.
Previous incidents involving Chinese military presence near Japan include a Chinese Y-9 reconnaissance aircraft violating Japanese airspace last month, followed shortly after by a Chinese survey ship breaching Japanese territorial waters near Kagoshima. In response, the Japanese government communicated its “serious concerns” to China through diplomatic channels on Wednesday. Moriya emphasized that China’s military activities near Japan have been escalating in recent years, prompting Japan to closely monitor Chinese warships in the region and enhance intelligence gathering and vigilance.
Japan has fortified its defenses in southwestern regions, particularly on remote islands crucial to its defense strategy in the area. The Liaoning, a Soviet-built aircraft carrier, was retrofitted extensively before entering service in 2012 as China’s first aircraft carrier. Presently, China boasts two additional aircraft carriers, including one that was entirely designed and constructed within the country.
