Japan accuses Beijing of pushing East China Sea, South China Sea claims amid pandemic
- Annual defence white paper describes ‘relentless’ intrusions in waters around Senkaku/Diaoyu islets and claims China spread coronavirus disinformation
- Analysts say the superpower has become a longer-term and more serious threat to Japan than volatile nuclear-powered North Korea
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government on Tuesday approved a white paper that said, among other things, China was “continuing to attempt to alter the status quo in the East China Sea and the South China Sea” and was spreading disinformation while providing medical aid to countries hit hard by Covid-19.
Explained: Diaoyu/Senkaku islands dispute
The two districts, named Xisha and Nansha, use the Chinese names for the disputed Paracel and Spratly Islands, respectively.
The white paper came as Japan’s security ally, the US, issued a direct challenge to Beijing’s South China Sea claims, with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo issuing a statement to reject all Chinese claims beyond the 12-nautical mile territorial area around the Spratly Islands.
Beijing insists its intentions in the waterway, where about US$3 trillion of global trade passes each year, are peaceful.
Washington has been sparring with Beijing on issues ranging from trade to China’s coronavirus response to human rights. Although Abe has been a staunch supporter of the US, he has also focused on building closer ties with China – Japan’s most important trading partner after the US – that have been marred by disagreements over wartime occupation and territorial disputes.
Akitoshi Miyashita, a professor of international relations at Tokyo International University, said the wording of the review came as “a surprise”, given Tokyo was poised to host Chinese leader Xi Jinping on a bilateral visit sometime this year.
The expectation was that Abe would create a “friendly environment to allow the state visit to go ahead,” he said.
“If the Defence Ministry is being this critical of China in the white paper, then it might take more time before Xi’s visit can go ahead as Beijing may well consider the negative tone,” he added.
Garren Mulloy, a professor of international relations at Daito Bunkyo University who specialises in regional security, said Tokyo’s tone regarding Beijing’s security moves had become firmer in recent years and its white papers had focused more on flashpoints for Japan in addition to the country’s defence spending.
But this year’s review contained more specific details, such as the number of times Chinese Coast Guard vessels had entered disputed waters around the Senkaku/Diaoyu chain and Beijing’s military cooperation with Moscow.
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“[Tokyo is] not just listing Chinese military spending on aircraft or ships, but they have tried this year to show how Beijing’s actions are more strategic,” Mulloy said. “I would not say that the language used in the new report is alarmist but it does try to explain the strategic approach that China is taking in the region and the challenges that poses to Japan.”
The defence white paper reiterated that Japan believed China could use its belt and road infrastructure plan to push its People’s Liberation Army into the Indian and Pacific Ocean regions.
China’s actions – which include militarising outposts in the South China Sea and other non-military means to force shifts in the regional status quo – have angered other claimants, the paper said, adding that Beijing’s military spending had raised international concerns.
But part of the white paper also focused on criticism of China’s virus-related assistance to other nations as a means of furthering its own political and economic interests amid social unrest and confusion created by the pandemic.
I would not say that the language used in the new report is alarmist but it does try to explain the strategic approach that China is taking
It claimed Beijing has engaged in propaganda and spread “disinformation”. A defence ministry official at a briefing on the paper highlighted online claims that the virus was brought to China by a US military member, and that Chinese herbal remedies could treat Covid-19.
With the international community grappling with the pandemic, a further spread of the virus “may expose and intensify strategic competition among countries intending to create international and regional orders more preferable to themselves and to expand their influence”, the white paper said.
Mulloy said he believed that by highlighting disinformation, Japan was referring to allegations by US intelligence officials that Beijing had an extensive campaign to influence US politics and policy.
“Tokyo is still concerned and watching the situation closely because of the threat of a cyberattack on Japan, including through things like social media networks that are proxy state agents,” he said.
Mulloy also noted this year’s report came in a pink binder bearing an image of Mount Fuji and cherry blossom – a far cry from the military hardware that has typically appeared on the cover of the report in the past, he said.
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Other threats faced by Japan highlighted in the review included North Korea’s ongoing development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles that Pyongyang began testing last year.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un had rolled out new solid-fuel ballistic missiles that are easer to move, hide and fire than many liquid fuel versions, including the nuclear-capable, hypersonic KN-23 missiles that could strike all of South Korea and perhaps even Japan.
“These enhancements in its capabilities make early detection of the signs of a launch and the interceptions of missiles more difficult,” the paper said.
Japan abandoned the US-backed Aegis Ashore ballistic-missile defence programme after a backlash among residents where two batteries were supposed to be based.
Additional reporting by Kyodo and Bloomberg
