A State Department spokesperson criticized China’s latest military maneuvers, saying they are ‘not conducive to regional peace and stability.’
The United States has issued its first criticism of China after Chinese fighter jets intermittently locked their radar on Japanese military aircraft over international waters, an incident that has intensified tensions between the two Asian neighbors.
“China’s actions are not conducive to regional peace and stability,” a State Department spokesperson said on Dec. 9, referring to the radar incident on Dec. 6.
“The U.S.–Japan Alliance is stronger and more united than ever. Our commitment to our ally Japan is unwavering, and we are in close contact on this and other issues.”
The run-in happened over the high seas of Japan’s Okinawa Island and lasted about 30 minutes across two encounters on Dec. 6, according to the Japanese defense ministry.
The following day, Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Funakoshi Takehiro summoned Chinese Ambassador Wu Jianghao and “made a strong protest that such dangerous acts are extremely regrettable,” according to a ministry statement.
Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara welcomed the State Department’s comments, saying they “demonstrate the strong U.S.–Japan alliance.”
The Chinese regime has rebuffed Tokyo’s account of the incident. According to Chinese state-run media outlet Xinhua, Wang Xuemeng, a spokesperson for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy, said on Dec. 7 that Japanese aircraft had repeatedly approached and harassed the Chinese navy as it was conducting carrier-based flight training east of the Miyako Strait.
Tensions between China’s communist regime and Japan have rapidly escalated in the past month, as Beijing has been applying economic pressure and engaging in military coercive tactics against Japan since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks on Taiwan on Nov. 7. That day, Takaichi told parliamentarians that a Chinese attack on Taiwan would constitute a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan and could trigger a military response from Tokyo.
By Frank Fang
