The China Thread

[Josquius]

How much more support can you get from the US government than this?

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2012/12/01/national/u-s-senate-passes-senkaku-backing/

U.S. Senate passes Senkaku backing
by Eric Johnston

Staff Writer

    Dec 1, 2012
    Article history

OSAKA – The U.S. Senate on Thursday unanimously approved an amendment to the 2013 National Defense Authorization Act that is designed to counter attempts by China to challenge Japan's administration of the Senkaku Islands but sidesteps the question of who has ultimate sovereignty over the disputed territory.

The amendment, offered by Jim Webb, a Virginia Democrat, states U.S. opposition to any efforts to coerce, threaten to use force or use force to resolve territorial issues. It concludes by reaffirming the commitment of the U.S. to the defense of territories under the administration of Japan.

"The peaceful settlement of territorial and jurisdictional disputes in the East China Sea requires the exercise of self-restraint by all parties in the conduct of activities that would complicate or escalate disputes and destabilize the region, and differences should be handled in a constructive manner consistent with universally recognized principles of customary international law," the amendment says.

"While the United States takes no position on the ultimate sovereignty of the Senkaku Islands, the United States acknowledges the administration of Japan over the Senkaku Islands. The unilateral actions of a third party will not affect United States acknowledgement of the administration of Japan over the Senkaku Islands," it adds.

"Over the past several years, China has taken increasingly aggressive actions to assert its claim over the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea and in a broad expanse of the South China Sea," Webb said.

The US needs better PR.
That is  mostly reported as

the United States takes no position on the ultimate sovereignty of the Senkaku Islands,

[Sheilbh]

Maybe the Japanese media is like the British? They oscillate from neediness (special relationship on the rocks) to chippiness (poodle)?

[CountDeMoney]

Maybe the Japanese media is like the British? They oscillate from neediness (special relationship on the rocks) to chippiness (poodle)?

Or, like the rest of the world, they're confident that not only can the JSDF handle anything the PLA does in their usual ham-handed crisis management, but that it doesn't even need to be said that the United States--as not only the guarantor of both freedom of navigation and freedom of airspace in the Pacific since 1945, but of Japan's existence itself--has Japan's back, and that it's mildly insulting to even bother questioning it.

[jimmy olsen]

How much more support can you get from the US government than this?

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2012/12/01/national/u-s-senate-passes-senkaku-backing/

U.S. Senate passes Senkaku backing
by Eric Johnston

Staff Writer

    Dec 1, 2012
    Article history

OSAKA – The U.S. Senate on Thursday unanimously approved an amendment to the 2013 National Defense Authorization Act that is designed to counter attempts by China to challenge Japan's administration of the Senkaku Islands but sidesteps the question of who has ultimate sovereignty over the disputed territory.

The amendment, offered by Jim Webb, a Virginia Democrat, states U.S. opposition to any efforts to coerce, threaten to use force or use force to resolve territorial issues. It concludes by reaffirming the commitment of the U.S. to the defense of territories under the administration of Japan.

The US needs better PR.
That is  mostly reported as

the United States takes no position on the ultimate sovereignty of the Senkaku Islands,

It's not our fault your media is stupid.

[CountDeMoney]

Talk about sending messages that we mean business.

First, B-52s...then...JOE, BITCHES

What can be done? Next week Joe Biden, America's vice-president, arrives in China.

[CountDeMoney]

The US needs better PR.

The 7th Fleet takes care of our PR just fine.

PHILIPPINE SEA (NNS) -- Demonstrating the extraordinary flexibility of a carrier strike group, USS George Washington (CVN 73) kicked off its participation in Annual Exercise (AnnualEx) 13, Nov. 25, just days after completing a humanitarian assistance mission under Operation Damayan in the Philippines.

AnnualEx 13 is designed to increase the defensive readiness and interoperability of Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) and U.S. naval forces through training in air and sea operations.

The complex exercise, which takes place in waters surrounding Japan, involves units in comprehensive scenarios involving maritime training in the air, surface and subsurface battlespaces in support of the defense of Japan.

AnnualEx allows the United States and Japan to practice and evaluate the coordination, procedures and interoperability elements required to effectively and mutually respond to the defense of Japan or to a regional crisis or contingency situation in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region, while building bilateral confidence and working relationships.

AnnualEx 13 strengthens the close, long-standing relationship of U.S. forces and JMSDF. This exercise demonstrates the continuing commitment to deepen strong ties of mutual support and friendship.

U.S. Navy participating units include aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73), Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruisers USS Antietam (CG 54), Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG 54), USS Lassen (DDG 82), USS McCampbell (DDG 85), USS Mustin (DDG 89) and maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft and a U.S. submarine.

[jimmy olsen]

Excellent to see Japan and South Korea not backing down.

http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/11/29/21675753-on-high-alert-fighter-jets-ramp-up-tensions-in-east-china-sea?lite

By Ben Blanchard and Roberta Rampton, Reuters

BEIJING/WASHINGTON - China scrambled jets on Friday in response to two U.S. spy planes and 10 Japanese aircraft, including F-15 fighters, entering its new air defense zone over the East China Sea, state news agency Xinhua said, raising the stakes in a standoff with the United States, Japan and South Korea.

The jets were scrambled for effective monitoring, Xinhua cited air force spokesman Shen Jinke as saying. The report gave no further details.

Japan and South Korea flew military aircraft through the zone, which includes the skies over islands at the heart of a territorial dispute between Japan and China, the two countries said on Thursday, while Washington sent two unarmed B-52 bombers into the airspace earlier this week in a sign of support for its ally Japan. None of those aircraft informed China.

The Pentagon has declined to offer specifics on any additional U.S. flights and it neither confirmed nor denied the Chinese report of two U.S. spy aircraft entering the zone.

One U.S. defense official, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said only the U.S. military was still flying routine missions in the region, including reconnaissance and surveillance flights.

Xinhua earlier said China had sent several fighter jets and an early warning aircraft into the new air defense zone.

China last week announced that foreign aircraft passing through it - including passenger planes - would have to identify themselves to Chinese authorities.

The Chinese patrol mission, conducted on Thursday, was "a defensive measure and in line with international common practices", Xinhua reported Shen as saying.

The aircraft, including Russian-designed Su-30 fighter jets, conducted routine patrols and monitored targets in the zone, Shen said.

"China's air force is on high alert and will take measures to deal with diverse air threats to firmly protect the security of the country's airspace," he said.

However, Defense Ministry spokesman Yang Yujun said it was "incorrect" to suggest China would shoot down aircraft which entered the zone without first identifying themselves. He did not elaborate.

Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said on Friday he did not know if Chinese planes were in the zone but added there was no change to Japan's sense of alertness.

Ties between China and Japan have been strained for months by the dispute over the islands in the East China Sea, called the Diaoyu by China and the Senkaku by Japan. Washington takes no position on the sovereignty of the islands but recognizes Tokyo's administrative control and says the U.S.-Japan security pact applies to them.

Europe's top diplomat, Catherine Ashton, said the European Union was concerned about China's decision to establish the new air defense zone as well as its announcement of "emergency defense measures" if other parties did not comply.

"This development heightens the risk of escalation and contributes to raising tensions in the region," Ashton said. "The EU calls on all sides to exercise caution and restraint."

CRITICISM

China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang criticized Ashton's remarks, saying China hoped the EU could treat the situation "objectively and rationally".

"Actually, Madam Ashton should know that some European countries also have air defense identification zones," Qin said. "I don't know if this leads to tensions in the European regional situation. European countries can have air defense identification zones. Why can't China?"

Asked to clarify China's expectations for what information airlines were expected to report, Qin said: "International law does not have clear rules on what kind of flight or airplane should apply", adding that each country made its own rules.

"Therefore, China's method does not violate international law and accords with international practice," he said.

China's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that since the zone had come into force there had been no impact on the safe operation of international civilian flights, although it added that China "hoped" airlines would cooperate.

Japan's two biggest airlines have defied the identification order since Wednesday at the request of the Japanese government.

Although there are risks of a confrontation in the zone, U.S. and Chinese military officials have stepped up communication with each other in recent years and are in regular contact to avoid accidental clashes.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is visiting China, Japan and South Korea next week, and will try to ease tensions over the issue, senior U.S. officials said.

"We decline to comment on Chinese flights, but the United States will continue to partner with our allies and operate in the area as normal," a Pentagon spokesman said.

China's Defense Ministry has said that it was aware of the U.S., Japanese and South Korean military aircraft in the zone and had tracked them all.

Ties between China and Japan, often tense, have increasingly been frayed in recent years by regional rivalry, mutual mistrust over military intentions and what China feels is Japan's lack of contrition over its brutal occupation of parts of China before and during World War Two.

In a show of support for the military, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited a base in Jinan in eastern China, where he said "military training is critical to beef up the PLA's (People's Liberation Army) war capacities", according to the Xinhau news agency.

Xi did not make direct mention of the East China Sea air defense zone.

"Though life is becoming better, history can't be forgotten and those who made sacrifices for (the) new China's founding must be remembered," Xinhua quoted Xi as saying in a separate report.

The Global Times, an influential tabloid published by the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily newspaper, praised the government for its calm response in the face of "provocations", saying China would not target the United States in the zone as long as it "does not go too far".
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But it warned Japan it could expect a robust response if it continued to fly military aircraft in the zone.

"If the trend continues, there will likely be frictions and confrontations and even a collision in the air ... It is therefore an urgent task for China to further train its air force to make full preparation for potential conflicts," it wrote in an editorial on Friday.

Additional reporting by Phil Stewart in Washington and Sui-Lee Wee, Michael Martina and Paul Carsten in Beijing

[Jacob]

Speculation in the Xiacob household is that Xi may be in slightly less firm control than previously thought, and that this escalation could very well be a play by someone aligned with the military to assert their authority.

[CountDeMoney]

Meh, it's still Xi's show on the CMC. Don't get fooled by the rolled-up sleeves and Dockers from meeting Obama, it's still his call.

[Admiral Yi]

Just heard on BBC that the US is advising American airlines to comply with Chinese ADIZ rules.

Methinks not the best move geopolitically.

[jimmy olsen]

Just heard on BBC that the US is advising American airlines to comply with Chinese ADIZ rules.

Methinks not the best move geopolitically.

As long as the US and Japanese military keep sending in warplanes, I don't think it matters.

[Admiral Yi]

It's a game of inches, and the US just blinked.

I would be OK with telling the airlines to sound off, just as long as you don't announce it to the world that that's what you've done.

[Sheilbh]

I would be OK with telling the airlines to sound off, just as long as you don't announce it to the world that that's what you've done.

How would that be possible? You really think it wouldn't leak from State or one of the staff from one of the however many airlines you spoke to?

It was bound to come out. Given that better that you make the statement (and keep up other stuff) than it furtively leaking.

[Admiral Yi]

"Is it true that the Obama administration has advised US airlines to announce their presence to the Chinese government upon entering China's newly-declared Air Defense Identification Zone?"

"The position of the US is that airplanes transiting the area described have no obligation to communicate their identity and flight plan to the Chinese government."

[Sheilbh]

I really don't get the advantage of that. It'd still come out but the US government would've been extra Jesuitical about it?

It'd also probably cause a small political stink at home when it leaks out that the US government did strongly suggest airlines cooperate.