🔗 Share this article Beijing Sends Maritime Patrol Vessels to Senkaku Islands During Dispute with Japan China has deployed its maritime law enforcement into the waters of the Senkaku islands and military drones near remote Japan's territory as China ramps up strains following the Japanese prime minister’s comments regarding the island of Taiwan. Patrol Operations This past Sunday, the China's maritime patrol announced that its ships conducted a “lawful patrol operation” through the territorial seas of the Senkaku, which are under the control of Tokyo but also asserted as territory by Beijing. “China coast guard vessel 1307 formation performed surveillance within the territorial waters of the Senkaku islands. This was a lawful patrol operation undertaken by the Chinese maritime authorities to uphold its rights and interests,” the statement said. Bilateral Tensions Beijing and Tokyo have repeatedly faced off around the islands but the recent developments occur during an escalating political dispute after the Japanese prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, addressed lawmakers that if China attack democratically ruled Taiwan it might provoke a armed reaction from Tokyo. That provoked a furious reaction from Beijing, which has indicated it demands a withdrawal from Takaichi. Taiwan's Position China claims the island as its own territory and intends to annex it under what it describes as “unification”. It has left open the use of force. The island's administration and citizens overwhelmingly reject the prospect of Chinese rule – choosing to preserve the current situation without explicitly declaring themselves independent, but pledging to protect their sovereignty if required. An attack or invasion by Beijing would risk escalating into a international confrontation, possibly drawing in the United States and other allies including Japan, which has land just 110km (68 miles) from Taiwan. Defense Operations On the island, the defence ministry reported this weekend that it had observed three dozen PLA planes, multiple naval vessels and one “official” ship, which was likely the maritime patrol, operating around the territory over the previous day. Maps provided by the ministry showed up to multiple UAVs operating near Taiwan and the Japan's territory off its north-east coast, seeming to travel particularly close to Yonaguni. Chinese military transits there are not rare, but infrequent, and Beijing's defense operations in the island's ADIZ generally has been low in the past month. Earlier this weekend, the defense officials said China had been conducting another “joint combat patrol” to “test our defensive capabilities”. It added Taiwan had sent its own aircraft and ships to monitor the situation. Taiwan reports such Chinese patrols a few times monthly as part of what the Taiwanese government says is an ongoing military pressure campaign. Political Strain Tokyo has been facing mounting pressure from China since the Japanese official made her comments, with Beijing's diplomatic representative in the Japanese city prompting a formal protest from Japan by stating that “those who interfere will face consequences”. Beijing then called in Japan's diplomat for the first time in more than two years, and China’s defence ministry declared that any Japanese intervention would be doomed to fail. Warning for Citizens On Friday, Beijing cautioned its citizens against travelling to Japan, leading Japan to request China to take “suitable actions”, though it provided no details. Three Chinese airlines said on Saturday that flights to Tokyo could be refunded or changed for free. In another escalation, Beijing's administration on Sunday urged its citizens to “carefully reconsider” studying in Japan, citing what it characterized as an unstable security environment. Although not an outright prohibition, a significant decrease in the number of Chinese students could have a negative impact on Japanese universities. A historic high of over 336,000 international students were studying in Japan last year, according to education statistics. They featured over 123,000 learners from China – by far the single biggest group. Media Response Earlier this weekend, a Chinese state media editorial charged the Japanese official with performing a diplomatic maneuver that was “not just dangerously provocative but fundamentally perverse”. “A conflict between Japan and China would not be a small-scale encounter; it would probably involve other nations, including the US, and could rapidly escalate to a large-scale conflict with severe repercussions.” Policy Standpoints The government of Taiwan says the island's residents alone determine their destiny. Officials in Tokyo have previously avoided discussing the island openly when discussing such scenarios, maintaining a “strategic ambiguity” also favoured by Tokyo’s main security ally, the United States. Nevertheless, China’s ruling Communist party says the incorporation of the island with the People’s Republic of China is “unavoidable”, and casts any opposition to it as escalatory. As it moves towards being capable of military annexation, Beijing has also been escalating its non-military activity and its rhetoric towards Taiwan.