A Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer, the Sazanami, has made history by sailing through the Taiwan Strait for the first time since the formation of the Self-Defense Forces. The move is seen as a response to China’s increasing military activities in the region, including a reconnaissance plane entering Japanese airspace in August. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ordered the dispatch of the Sazanami after discussing the situation with his government.
According to Japanese government sources, on Wednesday morning, the Sazanami entered the Taiwan Strait from the East China Sea and took over 10 hours to complete its passage before leaving that evening. The destroyer was accompanied by naval ships from Australia and New Zealand and was scheduled to hold joint exercises with their naval forces in South China Sea starting Thursday.
China’s military has been more active near Japan since August. On August 26th, a Chinese reconnaissance plane violated Japanese airspace off Nagasaki Prefecture’s Danjo Islands – marking its first intrusion into Japanese airspace. On September 18th, China’s Navy aircraft carrier Liaoning sailed between Yonaguni Island and Iriomote Island – becoming their first carrier to enter Japan’s contiguous zone just outside territorial waters.
Prime Minister Kishida decided to send out this destroyer after assessing that Beijing might escalate its military actions further if no response was made.
The Taiwan Strait is approximately 130 kilometers wide at its narrowest point. While territorial waters extend up to 12 nautical miles or about 22 kilometers from a country’s coasts according to international recognition of sovereignty, China opposes describing this strait as international waters. Previous Japanese governments have refrained from sending Maritime Self-Defense Force vessels through this waterway due to concerns about potential backlash from Beijing.
Naval vessels from various countries regularly pass through this strait as a demonstration of “freedom of navigation.” German naval ships also sailed through it earlier this month for their first time in over two decades.
