A Chinese Navy survey ship, belonging to the Shupang-class, entered Japanese territorial waters near Kuchinoerabu Island in Kagoshima Prefecture at approximately 6 a.m. on Saturday. The ship remained there for nearly two hours before leaving. This incident marks the 13th time that Chinese Navy ships have intruded into Japanese territorial waters since September of last year. In response, the Maritime Self-Defense Force dispatched ships and aircraft for warning and surveillance purposes.
Under the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, all ships, including warships, are granted innocent passage rights. This means that they are allowed to pass through other nations’ territorial waters as long as they do not pose a threat to coastal countries’ safety. However, conducting maritime surveys is not considered innocent passage.
The Defense Ministry confirmed that the Chinese survey ship did not engage in any unusual activities during its intrusion and later exited Japanese territorial waters from Yakushima Island in Kagoshima Prefecture before heading south.
This incident follows another breach of Japan’s sovereignty when a Chinese military intelligence-gathering plane entered Japanese airspace near the Danjo Islands in Nagasaki Prefecture on August 26th.
In response to these actions by China’s military forces, Hiroyuki Namazu, director general of Japan’s Foreign Ministry’s Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau expressed strong concern and lodged a protest with Shi Yong, minister of the Chinese Embassy in Japan. Namazu emphasized that Japan has serious concerns regarding China’s military activities.
These repeated intrusions into Japanese territory by Chinese naval vessels raise tensions between both countries and highlight ongoing disputes over maritime boundaries in East Asia.