A panel of advisers to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is reportedly urging the government to focus on ocean or maritime policy as a key security issue.
UPI, picking up a report from Japan’s Jiji press service, says the stress on maritime security follows Pyongyang’s missile tests and incursions by Chinese military planes and ships into Japanese territorial waters this year.
In a shift, the panel making recommendations for Japan’s five-year “Basic Plan on Ocean Policy” wants Tokyo to apportion more funds for maritime security involving military activities than developing oceanic resources such as fisheries.
Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun says the five-year plan advocates preserving the oceans as an open and freely navigable area based on the “rule of law.” The big Japanese newspaper reportedly says such a policy includes the maintenance and management of Japan’s border islands in the East Sea, and bolstering military security near those areas.
The main area of friction is the Senkaku Islands (called Diaoyu by China) that are claimed by both Tokyo and Beijing. The tiny isles have been the scene of face offs between Japanese and Chinese planes and naval vessels.
Japan has also moved small Ground Self-Defense Force units to the Ryukyu islands south of Okinawa.
Tokyo and Beijing are reportedly creating a hotline between the two countries to head off accidental military clashes in the East Sea.
Trump unveils new US national security policy
In related news, President Donald Trump was in the process of unveiling a new, assertive US national security policy on Monday that focuses, in part, on creating a new system of US diplomatic alliances with India and Japan to deter China in the region.
Wrong, only way Japan can secure itself is a succesfully detente between Tokyo and Beijing.
The "long leg" of southern islands (south in terms of Japan) Japan grabbed during height of colonial days in Asia is far away from Japan mainland – Japan themselves call them "far flung islands". Those tiny tiny islands conveniently blocks nearly 60% of China coast line’s direct exit out to seas. Recent Chinese overflights have a simple reason: All of China’s eastern coastline will HAVE to pass through those islands when flying out. As such those tiny islands presents a two way security dilemma: They are too small for Japan to defend properly when viewed from Japan, but when viewed from China it gives Japan an unusual blockage against China’s rightful access to seas directly from her long coastline for such small insignificant islands – and Japan only grabbed it "recently" during colonial days to boot. Neither nation is secure about this arrangement as is when two country’s relations are cold-hostile, thus the only real solution is to hunker down and really build relations and trust.
Invite americans as hedge – good luck on that in the long term. They already veiw their influence in the region as an entitlement. I’ve already observed long enough they have 0 plans to help solve the fundamental issue that is the cold China-Japan relations. In fact by involving US Japan is simply giving herself an easy way out and avoid the fundamental solution – A successful Sino – Japan Detente.