Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force P-3C Orion surveillance plane flies over the disputed islands, called the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, in the East China Sea, on Oct. 13, 2011. (Kyodo News/AP)
TOKYO — Japan and China are accusing each other of violating the airspace around the Japanese-controlled East China Sea islands that Beijing also claims.
Japan’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that it has protested to Beijing after a Chinese helicopter that took off from one of China’s four coast guard boats had entered Japan’s territorial waters around the Senkaku island, violating the Japanese airspace around them for about 15 minutes on Saturday.
In response to the airspace intrusion, Japan’s Self-Defense Force scrambled fighter jets, the Defense Ministry said.
China routinely sends coast guard vessels and aircraft into waters and airspace surrounding the islands, which China calls the Diaoyu, to harass Japanese vessels in the area and force Japan to scramble jets in response.
The latest territorial flap comes as Japan and China were appearing to have warm ties as both countries seek to mitigate damages from the U.S. tariff war.
The Japanese Foreign Ministry said it lodged a “very severe protest” through the Chinese embassy in Japan, claiming that China Coast Guard actions infringed Japan’s sovereignty and urging the Chinese government to ensure preventive measures.
China also said in a statement that it took a similar step and protested to Japan over a Japanese civilian aircraft violating its airspace around the islands, saying it was “strongly dissatisfied” about Japanese violation of China’s sovereignty.
Japanese officials are investigating a possible connection between the Chinese coast guard helicopter’s airspace intrusion and the small Japanese civilian aircraft flying in the area around the same time.
Saturday’s intrusion was the first by China since a Chinese reconnaissance aircraft violated the Japanese airspace off the southern prefecture of Nagasaki. Chinese aircraft have also violated the Japanese airspace around the Senkaku twice in the past.
Associated Press writer Huizhong Wu in Taipei contributed to this report.
