Japan Kickstarts Indo-Pacific Warship Tour With Eye on China

Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) deployed its fleet on Thursday to begin an Indo-Pacific tour to bolster defense cooperation in the face of mounting military threats from communist China.

The annual Indo-Pacific deployment will run until Sept. 17, and the MSDF fleet will make port calls in 17 countries, including the Pacific island nations of Kiribati, the Solomon Islands, Fiji, Palau, and Tonga.

Around 1,190 personnel will take part in the deployment, which involves one submarine and three surface units, including the multi-mission Kumano stealth frigate, according to Japan’s Defense Ministry (pdf).

The MSDF fleet will also participate in some exercises, including the Pacific Vanguard exercise—involving the United States, Australia, Japan, and South Korea—and the MALABAR exercise, which Australia will host.

“During the next two months, JS Kumano [will] enhance relations with the other navies and contribute to the peace and stability of the region to realize ‘Free and Open Indo-Pacific,’” MSDF said on Twitter.

Japan has sought to bolster defense cooperation with Indo-Pacific countries to counter Beijing’s military assertiveness.

During a bilateral meeting in Beijing on April 2, Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi raised concerns over “China’s intensification of military activities around Japan”—particularly near the Japanese-controlled Senkaku Islands that China also claims—and China’s cooperation with Russia.

“We are facing numerous challenges and are at a critical stage. Both Japan and China are major powers that bear important responsibilities for the peace and prosperity of the region and the international community,” he said.

Hayashi said Japan was also concerned about the situation in the disputed South China Sea, where Beijing is pushing its claims on neighboring countries despite a Hague Tribunal ruling against its claims in 2016, and emphasized the need to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

In response, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang warned Japan to refrain from “interfering in the Taiwan issue or undermining China’s sovereignty in any form.”

He said the Taiwan issue is “at the very core of China’s core interests.”

Qin Gang said that Beijing is willing to work with Japan to “properly manage differences, remove obstacles and ease burdens for bilateral relations, and build a China-Japan relationship that meets the requirements of the new era.”

Japanese Coast Guard vessel and boats (rear and right) sail alongside a Japanese activists’ fishing boat (center) near a group of disputed islands called Diaoyu by China and Senkaku by Japan on Aug. 18, 2013. (Emily Wang/AP Photo)

The two nations have established a direct military hotline to prevent maritime and air clashes. Japan’s Defense Ministry said the line will be used to respond to “unforeseen circumstances” and to “build trust between the two countries.”

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) claims democratic self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory and has threatened to bring the island under its control by force if necessary.

Beijing staged a three-day military drill around Taiwan on April 8 after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen met with U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) in California.

Chinese aircraft incursions into the region continued despite the fact that the CCP had already proclaimed the conclusion of its military exercise on April 10.

Taiwan’s military said it detected 18 Chinese aircraft and four naval vessels near the island on April 16, with four aircraft spotted entering southwest and southeast of Taiwan’s airspace.

The United States deployed the guided-missile destroyer USS Milius through the Taiwan Strait on April 16, just days after the Chinese military simulated precision strikes against Taiwan.

Reuters contributed to this report.