Japanese destroyer transits Taiwan Strait for first time, angering China
PHOTO CAPTION: The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) Takanami-class destroyer JS Sazanami (DD 113) steams alongside a U.S. amphibious transport dock ship in the Sea of Japan, March 31, 2017. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jeanette Mullinax via U.S. Defense Visual Information Distribution Service)
By Chang-Ran Kim and Colleen Howe
TOKYO/BEIJING (Reuters) -Japan's Self Defense Force sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Wednesday for the first time in a historic move that angered Beijing and marked the latest tussle between the neighbours accusing each other of escalating tensions in the region.
Japan's Yomiuri newspaper reported on Thursday that the SDF destroyer Sazanami entered the Taiwan Strait from the East China Sea on Wednesday morning to send a message to Beijing, spending more than 10 hours sailing southward to complete the passage.
The transit was conducted in concert with naval ships from Australia and New Zealand, the paper said, citing multiple government sources. It added that the three nations' navies were scheduled to hold joint exercises in the South China Sea starting on Thursday.
Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi declined to comment on the report, while expressing concern about China's increased military activity in the region.
"We have a strong sense of crisis that airspace violations have occurred one after another over a short period of time," he told a regular press conference. "We will continue to monitor the situation with strong interest."
Japan has responded to stepped-up Chinese military activity with a defence buildup it says aims to deter Beijing from using military force to push its territorial claims in the region.
Lin Jian, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, criticised the passage, saying it went against a mutual understanding of a one-China principle.
"The Chinese side is alert to the political intentions of the Japanese side and has lodged solemn representations," he told a press conference.
"We urge the Japanese side to honour its commitment on the Taiwan issue, be cautious in words and deeds, and refrain from obstructing Sino-Japan relations and peace in the Taiwan Strait."
The Yomiuri daily said Japan's SDF had hitherto avoided sailing through the waters so as not to upset Beijing, which says it alone exercises sovereignty and jurisdiction over the strait. China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own.
Taiwan's defence ministry on Thursday raised the alarm about a renewed surge of Chinese military activity around the island and live fire drills. Taiwan's government rejects China's sovereignty claims.
The U.S. navy and others periodically pass through the Taiwan Strait to claim "freedom of navigation". The German navy also made the transit this month for the first time in two decades, demonstrating Berlin's resolve to stand with Western allies.
New Zealand separately said that naval vessels from the country and Australia sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Wednesday, describing it as a routine activity consistent with international law. It did not mention Japan.
Asked about those activities, China's Lin said: "We will maintain a high degree of vigilance against any act that may endanger China's sovereignty and security."
On Wednesday, Beijing said it had successfully conducted a rare launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile into the Pacific Ocean, while leaders of the 'Quad' grouping of Australia, India, Japan and the United States last week expanded joint security steps in Asia's waters due to shared concerns about China.
(Reporting by Chang-Ran Kim in Tokyo and Colleen Howe in Beijing; additional reoprting by Lewis Jackson in Sydney; Editing by Kim Coghill)
