LAST UPDATE | 4 Aug 2022
BALLISTIC MISSILES FIRED by China are believed to have landed in Japan’s exclusive economic zone for the first time, Tokyo’s defence minister has said.
“Five of the nine ballistic missiles launched by China are believed to have landed within Japan’s EEZ,” Nobuo Kishi told reporters, as China holds massive military drills in the waters around Taiwan.
Japan “lodged a protest with China through diplomatic channels”, Kishi said, calling the matter “a serious problem that affects our national security and the safety of our citizens”.
China is holding its largest-ever military exercises around Taiwan, which it considers its territory and has vowed to one day seize, by force if necessary.
The show of military might was sparked by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the self-ruled island, despite stern warnings from Beijing.
Parts of Japan’s southernmost island region Okinawa are close to Taiwan. Kishi said it was the first time Chinese ballistic missiles had landed in Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
The EEZ extends up to 200 nautical miles from Japan’s coastline, beyond the limits of its territorial waters.
The figure of nine missiles fired was an assessment by the Japanese side, Kishi said, adding that the five appeared to have landed southwest of Okinawa’s Hateruma island.
The drills began today and involved a “conventional missile firepower assault” in waters to the east of Taiwan, the Chinese military said.
Japan had yesterday expressed concern to China over the drills, saying they were planned to take place in maritime areas which overlap with its EEZ.
All nine missiles were believed to have fallen within areas designated by China for the military exercises, Kishi said.
The minister declined to comment on China’s intentions regarding the drills, but nonetheless called them “extremely menacing”.
‘Maximum restraint’
A group of 10 south-east Asian countries has called for calm in the Taiwan Strait as it urged against any “provocative action” in the wake of a visit to Taipei by Pelosi.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) foreign ministers meeting in Cambodia’s Phnom Penh said they were concerned the situation could “destabilise the region and eventually could lead to miscalculation, serious confrontation, open conflicts and unpredictable consequences among major powers”.
In their statement, the Asean foreign ministers called for “maximum restraint” and for all sides to “refrain from provocative action”.
“The world is in dire need of wisdom and responsibility of all leaders to uphold multilateralism and partnership, cooperation, peaceful-coexistence and healthy competition for our shared goals of peace, stability, security and inclusive and sustainable development,” they said.
“We should act together and Asean stands ready to play a constructive role in facilitating peaceful dialogue between all parties including through utilising Asean-led mechanisms to deescalate tension, to safeguard peace, security and development in our region.”
- © AFP 2022 with reporting from PA.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say