Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi. File | Photo credit: Reuters
The violation of Japan’s airspace by Chinese military aircraft is “completely unacceptable”, the Japanese government’s top spokesman said on Tuesday (August 27, 2024), a day after Japan scrambled jets and summoned a Chinese embassy official in Tokyo in protest.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said at a regular press conference that the airspace violation “is not only a serious violation of Japan’s sovereignty, but also a threat to our security.”
Hayashi said the government was constantly monitoring growing Chinese military activity near Japan and would be fully prepared for any airspace violations. However, he declined to comment on the details of diplomatic talks between Tokyo and Beijing.
Japan said a Chinese Y-9 reconnaissance aircraft flew for about two minutes over Danjo Island, west of the southern island of Kyushu, on Monday morning in what it described as the first violation of its airspace by the Chinese military.
In addition to military aircraft, a plane from the China State Oceanic Administration and a China Coast Guard drone violated Japan’s airspace in 2012 and 2017, respectively, according to Japanese public broadcaster NHK.