China warns Japan not to interfere with Russian-Chinese patrols in the region

China warned Japan against “taking useless measures” hindering the joint patrols by the Chinese and Russian military in the region, Chinese Defense Ministry Spokesman Wu Qian said on Monday.

“Japan's close-range tracking and monitoring is very dangerous, and it is very easy to cause misunderstanding and misjudgment and accidents at sea and in the air. We urge the Japanese side to stop these meaningless interferences, stop activities that affect the healthy development of bilateral relations between China and Japan, and damage regional peace and stability. Irresponsible words and deeds,” the spokesman said.

He added: “According to the annual cooperation plan between the Chinese and Russian militaries, the naval formations of the two countries will conduct joint maritime patrols in relevant waters in the western and northern Pacific Ocean. This action is not aimed at a third party and has nothing to do with the current international and regional situation. During the cruise, the ships of China and Russia strictly abided by international laws and sailed on the high seas.”

Qian stressed: “It should be pointed out that the cooperation between the Chinese and Russian militaries is open and transparent, and aims to jointly safeguard international fairness and justice, and maintain world and regional security and stability.”

Japan’s Ministry of Defense had announced that the Chinese and Russian naval fleet ships entered the Sea of Okhotsk through the Soya Strait, and the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force sent ships and aircraft to track and monitor.

Russia and China have been increasing the frequency of their joint patrols both naval and air.

In June, Russia’s Aerospace Forces and China’s People's Liberation Army Air Force conducted joint aerial patrols over the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea, as well as the western part of the Pacific Ocean, according to state news agency TASS.

In July, the two countries held the Northern/Interaction-2023 drills in the Sea of Japan and at the end of the month, Russian and Chinese navies launched joint patrols of the Pacific. A detachment of ships from both countries has crossed the Sea of Japan, the La Perouse Strait, the Sea of Okhotsk, the Kamchatka Strait and the Bering Sea and headed to the northern part of the Pacific toward the coast of Alaska.

On the other hand, Japan and the US announced they will jointly develop a new type of missile to intercept hypersonic projectiles being developed by countries such as North Korea, China and Russia, the Japan Times reported.

“Japan and the US are aiming to strengthen their alliance's deterrence capabilities in response to… Beijing's intensifying military activities in the Indo-Pacific region including joint exercises with Moscow,” the Japan Times said.

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