TOKYO, Nov 1: Japan today denied interfering with Chinese military exercises in the western Pacific after Beijing lodged a formal diplomatic protest, saying China’s objections were unacceptable and it had acted in line with international law.
Ties between the Asian neighbours have been strained for months by a long and bitter dispute over islands in the East China Sea believed to be surrounded by energy-rich waters, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said his nation is ready to be more assertive towards China.
China’s defence ministry on Thursday slammed Japan’s “dangerous provocation” in shadowing the drills, without clearly stating the location. It also said Japan had disrupted the live fire exercises.
Japanese Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera told reporters that Japan had done nothing to interfere with the exercises, which he said were carried out in the sea southeast of the Sakishima island chain, south of the disputed islands known as the Senkaku in Japan and the Diaoyu in China.
“We have carried out the usual precautionary observations in accordance with international law,” Onodera said. “China’s views are unacceptable.”
(AGENCIES)
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