Japan warns China over new drilling rig in East China Sea

Japan says China is building a new offshore drilling platform near the demarcation line in the East China Sea, where Beijing is exploring for gas fields.

Part of the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu island chain between Japan and China in the East China Sea. Photo: Reuters

China “could set up a radar system on the rig, or use it as an operating base for helicopters or drones for aerial patrols,” Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said on July 10 during a special meeting of the Lower House’s security law committee. Nakatani said the move could become a security concern.

China is illegally reclaiming reefs in Vietnam's Spratly Islands in the South China Sea to build runways and communications facilities, so this latest discovery could indicate progress toward creating a military base in the East China Sea.

The Japanese government is monitoring the area regularly with air patrols by the Self-Defense Forces and Coast Guard. However, it has not provided information on how many rigs are being set up, their locations, their size, or other details. In June 2013, China built an offshore rig in the area. The Japanese government has demanded that construction stop, but China appears to have continued.

"I strongly oppose continued unilateral moves," Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told a special committee of the lower house of parliament on July 10.

In November 2013, China announced the establishment of an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) in the East China Sea, but the country cannot cover the entire area with land-based radar.

“If the radar is installed on the platform, it will complement the ADIZ,” Naktani told the committee. “It will enhance China’s surveillance and warning capabilities, allowing them to have a better understanding of the activities of the defense forces.”

The boundary between Japan and China's exclusive economic zones in the East China Sea is not clearly defined. The area where the rig is being built is on the Chinese side of a line equidistant from the coasts of the two countries.

According to Vnexpress