JAPAN SENDS DESTROYER THROUGH TAIWAN STRAIT AMID RISING TENSIONS WITH CHINA

Thu 26 September 2024:

For the first time, Japan has sent a destroyer, the Sazanami, through the Taiwan Strait, signaling rising concerns over China’s increasing military activity around Japan. The destroyer entered the strait from the East China Sea on Wednesday morning, completing a 10-hour journey southward, according to Japanese media reports from NHK and the Yomiuri Shimbun.

Joint Naval Passage with Allies

The passage was conducted alongside naval ships from Australia and New Zealand, ahead of joint military drills planned in the South China Sea. New Zealand’s navy confirmed that the HMNZS Aotearoa and Australia’s HMAS Sydney participated in the transit. This marks New Zealand’s first such passage in seven years, with the intent to assert the “right of freedom of navigation,” according to a spokesperson.

The Japanese move comes shortly after China’s aircraft carrier Liaoning sailed between two Japanese islands near Taiwan, a self-governing democracy that Beijing claims as its own. Japan condemned the incident, calling it “totally unacceptable,” though China maintained it acted within international law.

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Heightened Military Tensions

In late August, Japan reported that a Chinese spy plane violated its airspace near its southwestern islands. This, along with China’s recent test-launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile into the Pacific Ocean, has prompted heightened concern in Tokyo. Japan had not been notified in advance of the missile test and expressed “serious concern” over China’s growing military power.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reportedly ordered the destroyer’s passage through the Taiwan Strait to prevent China from becoming more assertive, according to unnamed government sources cited by the Yomiuri Shimbun. Spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi expressed Japan’s growing sense of urgency, stating, “We have a strong sense of crisis,” referring to recent airspace violations.

Allied Forces in the Region

The U.S. and its allies, including Japan, routinely send ships through the 180-kilometer-wide Taiwan Strait to assert its status as an international waterway. China, however, claims jurisdiction over these waters and has recently accused Germany of heightening security risks after two German military vessels sailed through the strait last month.

Global Concern Over China’s Maritime Actions

Bec Strating, an international relations professor at La Trobe University, noted that Japan’s passage through the Taiwan Strait is part of a larger pattern of countries increasing their naval presence in response to China’s maritime ambitions. Japan, in particular, has been dealing with China’s “grey zone” tactics in the East China Sea, including the use of coastguard vessels near disputed islands.

Leaders of the Quad nations – Australia, India, Japan, and the U.S. – have expanded joint security measures in Asia’s waters, motivated by shared concerns over China’s growing influence and military presence in the region.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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