Japan, U.S. defense chiefs oppose Chinese expansion in Asian seas
About $3 trillion worth of trade passes through the South China Sea each year
Former Bush 43 Assistant Secretary of State Robert Charles provides insight into rising tensions between the U.S. and China.
Japan’s Defence Minister Taro Kono said on Saturday he had agreed with his U.S. counterpart Mark Esper that both countries opposed any unilateral attempt to change the status quo in the key waterways of the South China Sea and the East China Sea.
Kono shared his view with the U.S. defense secretary at a time when the United States and China are at loggerheads over issues ranging from technology and human rights to Chinese military activities in the disputed South China Sea.
A thorny issue in China’s ties with Japan is Beijing’s claim to a group of tiny East China Sea islets controlled by Tokyo.
Chinese missile frigate Yuncheng launches an anti-ship missile during a military exercise in the waters near south China's Hainan Island and Paracel Islands in July 2016. (AP/Xinhua)
“We agreed that the international community will respond firmly to any unilateral change to the status quo in the South China Sea as well as the East China Sea,” Kono said.
CHINA BLASTS US SANCTIONS OVER SOUTH CHINA SEA CONSTRUCTION, VOWS 'FIRM' RESPONSE
He was speaking online from Guam to reporters in the Japanese capital following his meeting with Esper.
Kono said Esper had confirmed that the U.S.-Japan security treaty covered the East China Sea islets, known as the Senkaku islands in Japan and the Diaoyu islands in China.
US, CHINA TRADE JABS AS MILITARY TENSIONS WORSEN
Turning to Japan’s domestic politics, Kono said he would think hard about running in a ruling party election to choose a successor to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who abruptly announced his resignation for health reasons on Friday.
Chinese military vehicles carrying DF-21D anti-ship ballistic missiles. (AP Photo/Andy Wong, Pool)
The United States has long opposed China’s expansive territorial claims in the South China Sea and has sent warships regularly through the strategic waterway.
GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE
China claims 90% of the potentially energy-rich waters but Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also lay claim to parts of it.
About $3 trillion worth of trade passes through the waterway each year. China has built bases atop atolls in the region but says its intentions are peaceful.