🔗 Share this article Beijing Dispatches Coast Guard Vessels to Senkaku Islands During Tensions with Japan China has deployed its coast guard through the maritime area of the Senkaku islands and military drones past outlying Japan's territory as China escalates tensions following the Japanese prime minister’s comments regarding Taiwan. Patrol Operations This past Sunday, the Chinese coast guard announced that its vessels carried out a “rights enforcement patrol” through the territorial seas of the Senkaku, which are under the control of Japan but also asserted as territory by Beijing. “Chinese maritime patrol unit 1307 performed surveillance within the maritime jurisdiction of the Diaoyu islands. This was a legitimate rights enforcement activity conducted by the China coast guard to uphold its rights and interests,” the statement said. Diplomatic Spat Beijing and Tokyo have repeatedly faced off around the islands but the latest activity come amid an escalating political dispute after the Japanese prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, addressed lawmakers that if China attack democratically ruled Taiwan it could trigger a military response from Tokyo. That sparked an angry response from China, which has signalled it expects a withdrawal from Takaichi. Taiwan's Position Beijing asserts Taiwan as its own territory and intends to annex it under what it terms “reunification”. It has left open the use of force. The island's administration and people categorically refuse the idea of Beijing's control – choosing to preserve the current situation without formally announcing independence, but pledging to protect their sovereignty if required. An attack or invasion by Beijing would threaten to spiral into a international confrontation, possibly drawing in the United States and other partner nations including Japan, which has land just 110km (68 miles) from Taiwan. Defense Operations In Taiwan, the military authorities reported this weekend that it had observed 30 Chinese military aircraft, multiple naval vessels and one “official” ship, which was likely the coast guard, active near the island over the past 24 hours. Maps provided by the ministry showed up to multiple UAVs operating near Taiwan and the Japanese islands off its north-east coast, appearing to go unusually near to the nearby Japanese island. PLA movements there are occasional, but infrequent, and Beijing's defense operations in the island's ADIZ generally has been minimal in recent weeks. Late on Saturday, the ministry said China had been conducting another “combined military exercise” to “harass the airspace and sea around us”. It noted Taiwan had dispatched military assets to monitor the situation. The island documents these operations 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 Takaichi made her remarks, with China’s consul general in the Japanese city prompting a formal protest from Tokyo by stating that “those who interfere will face consequences”. China then called in Japan's diplomat for the first occasion since 2023, and China’s defence ministry stated that any Japanese intervention would be doomed to fail. Warning for Citizens Late last week, China advised its people to avoid visiting Japan, leading Japan to request China to take “suitable actions”, though it did not elaborate. Three Chinese airlines said on Saturday that tickets to Japan could be cancelled without penalty. Adding to the tensions, Beijing's administration on Sunday urged its citizens to “carefully reconsider” studying in Japan, citing what it characterized as an unstable security environment. While the advice does not amount to a ban, a significant decrease in the population of learners from China could have a detrimental effect on academic institutions in Japan. A record 336,708 foreign nationals were enrolled in Japanese schools last year, according to official data. They featured over 123,000 learners from China – by far the single biggest group. Official Commentary Late on Saturday, a Chinese state media editorial charged the Japanese official with performing a political stunt that was “not just dangerously provocative but fundamentally perverse”. “A conflict between Japan and China would not be a small-scale encounter; it would likely draw in other powers, including the United States, and could quickly spiral into a large-scale conflict with severe repercussions.” Policy Standpoints The administration in Taipei says the island's residents alone determine their destiny. Officials in Tokyo have previously avoided discussing the island openly when addressing potential conflicts, maintaining a “strategic ambiguity” also preferred by Tokyo’s main security ally, the US. Nevertheless, China’s ruling Communist party says the incorporation of the island with the mainland China is “inevitable”, and portrays dissent as provocative. As it advances toward potential armed takeover, China has also been escalating its non-military activity and its rhetoric towards Taiwan.