An Akizuki-class destroyer last month made the first-ever solo transit of a Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship through the Taiwan Strait, Japanese government officials with knowledge of the matter said yesterday.
The JS Akizuki carried out a north-to-south transit through the Taiwan Strait on Feb. 5 as it sailed to the South China Sea to participate in a joint exercise with US, Australian and Philippine forces that day.
The Japanese destroyer JS Sazanami in September last year made the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s first-ever transit through the Taiwan Strait, but it was joined by vessels from New Zealand and Australia, the Japanese daily Sankei Shimbun reported.
Photo: Screen grab from Seaforces.org’s Web site
The Akizuki-class destroyer made last month’s transit alone, and the move aimed to counter China’s aggressive behavior in the East and South China seas, the Sankei Shimbun reported.
The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force in a news release on Feb. 6 said that the JS Akizuki conducted a Japan-US-Australia-Philippine multilateral exercise in the South China Sea.
“Upholding the right of freedom of navigation and overflight, other lawful uses of the sea and international airspace, as well as respect for maritime right under international law, as reflected in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, the maritime cooperative activity showed a commonsense of value and a strong will to realize a ‘Free and Open Indo-Pacific,’” it said.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba approved the destroyer’s transit in response to previous proactive actions by China, a source with knowledge of the matter was quoted as saying in the report.
Six Chinese ships, including three military vessels and three coast guard vessels, sailed from the Pacific Ocean to the East China Sea in December last year, they were also quoted as saying.
Four China Coast Guard vessels have also been making intrusions into the territorial waters of the Diaoyutais (釣魚台列嶼), known as the Senkaku Islands in Japan, which are administered by Japan, but also claimed by Taiwan and China. Tokyo sees the vessels’ actions as provocative, they said.
The Taiwan Strait is considered to be international waters by many countries including the US.
The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force said that freedom of navigation should be ensured, but with concerns over China’s strong opposition, Japan previously did not send ships to transit the Taiwan Strait, the Sankei Shimbun reported.
However, as cross-strait tensions have been rising, Japan’s stance has also changed and is now proactively calling for freedom of navigation in the Taiwan Strait, it said.
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