🔗 Share this article China Dispatches Maritime Patrol Ships to Senkaku Islands Amid Tensions with Tokyo Beijing has sent its coast guard into the waters of the Diaoyu islands and military drones past remote Japan's territory as China escalates strains over the Japanese prime minister’s remarks regarding the island of Taiwan. Patrol Operations On Sunday, the Chinese coast guard announced that its vessels conducted a “lawful patrol operation” through the territorial seas of the Diaoyu islands, which are under the control of Japan but also asserted as territory by China. “China coast guard vessel 1307 formation performed surveillance within the maritime jurisdiction of the Senkaku islands. This was a lawful patrol operation conducted by the Chinese maritime authorities to uphold its rights and interests,” officials declared. Bilateral Tensions Beijing and Tokyo have repeatedly faced off around the islands but the recent developments occur during an escalating political dispute after the Japan's leader, the Japanese official, told parliament that if Beijing assaults democratically ruled Taiwan it could trigger a armed reaction from Japan. That provoked a furious reaction from Beijing, which has signalled it expects a retraction from the Japanese official. Taiwan's Position Beijing asserts Taiwan as its sovereign land and intends to annex it under what it terms “reunification”. It has not ruled out the military option. The island's administration and people overwhelmingly reject the idea of Beijing's control – choosing to preserve the status quo without explicitly declaring themselves independent, but pledging to protect their sovereignty if required. An attack or invasion by Beijing would threaten to spiral into a regional or global conflict, potentially involving the US and other allies including Japan, which has territory just 68 miles from Taiwan. Defense Operations On the island, the defence ministry reported this weekend that it had detected three dozen PLA planes, seven navy ships and one government vessel, which was likely the coast guard, operating around the island over the past 24 hours. Maps provided by the ministry showed up to multiple UAVs flying between the island and the Japanese islands off its northeastern shoreline, appearing to go unusually near to Yonaguni. PLA movements there are occasional, but uncommon, and Chinese military activity in the island's ADIZ generally has been low in recent weeks. Late on Saturday, the defense officials said Beijing had been carrying out another “joint combat patrol” to “test our defensive capabilities”. It added Taiwan had dispatched military assets to monitor the situation. Taiwan documents these operations a couple of times a month as part of what Taipei says is an ongoing military pressure campaign. Diplomatic Pressure Japan has been facing mounting pressure from Beijing since the Japanese official made her comments, with Beijing's diplomatic representative in Osaka triggering an official complaint from Japan by commenting that “the dirty head that sticks itself out must be cut off”. China then called in Japan's diplomat for the first time in more than two years, and Beijing's military authorities declared that any Japanese intervention would be certain to collapse. Warning for Citizens Late last week, Beijing advised its people to avoid visiting Japan, leading Japan to request China to take “suitable actions”, though it did not elaborate. Multiple carriers from China announced this weekend that flights to Tokyo could be refunded or changed for free. In another escalation, Beijing's administration on Sunday urged its citizens to “carefully reconsider” studying in Japan, citing what it described 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 negative impact on academic institutions in Japan. A historic high of over 336,000 international students were enrolled in Japanese schools last year, according to official data. They included more than 123,000 Chinese students – by far the largest demographic. Official Commentary Earlier this weekend, a Chinese state media editorial charged the Japanese official with performing a diplomatic maneuver that was “both reckless and fundamentally flawed”. “A clash between Tokyo and Beijing would not be a small-scale encounter; it would likely draw in other nations, including the US, and could rapidly escalate to a large-scale conflict with unimaginable consequences.” Strategic Positions The government of Taiwan says only its people can decide its future. Officials in Tokyo have traditionally refrained from publicly mentioning Taiwan when addressing potential conflicts, maintaining a “strategic ambiguity” also favoured by Japan's primary defense partner, the United States. However, China’s ruling Communist party says the unification of Taiwan with the mainland China is “inevitable”, and casts any opposition to it as escalatory. As it advances toward potential armed takeover, China has also been increasing its political operations and its statements towards the island.