Japan, China Lock Horns Over Disputed Islands

Fighter pilots stationed at the nearest Japanese base to a chain of islands both Tokyo and Beijing have claimed as their own, are on a round-the-clock stand-by to chase and warn off Chinese military planes entering Japanese airspace.

Back in 1990, the subtropical Naha was a military backwater, but the now the base’s commanding officer has said China’s assertiveness has made it Japan’s most important outpost, the Japan Times reported.

Naha’s location close to the contested Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea has only added to the pressure, with the squadron stationed there scrambling more than once a day on average, leading to a record of more than 400 encounters since March 2014.

Japan, China and Taiwan each claim ownership of the uninhabited Senkaku islands, which are called Diaoyu by China and Tiaoyutai by Taiwan. Last year the dispute led to an almost 39 percent drop in Japanese investment in China, which was Japan’s top trading partner in 2013.

China says it has records of the islands going back 600 years and that it administered them until it lost a war to Japan in 1895.

In 2013, China set up an air identification zone covering the disputed islands. Japan, for its part, is set to establish a new military observation unit on Yonaguni Island, which is close to the Japan-administered Senkakus.

Last year, Japan protested after Chinese fighters flew “abnormally close” to its military planes on two occasions. China has also complained about the activities of Japanese military planes.