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South China Morning Post
18-06-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Is China preparing to seize Diaoyu Islands? Japan ex-army chief warns of ‘absorption' plans
A former Japanese military chief has warned that Beijing's increasingly assertive moves around disputed islands in the East China Sea could be setting the stage for a Chinese landing operation. While analysts broadly agree that Beijing is seeking to expand control over the Diaoyu Islands , they differ on how close China might be to launching an outright takeover, with some warning of growing military preparations and others cautioning that a full-scale assault remains premature. In an interview with the conservative Sankei newspaper published on Monday, Kiyofumi Iwata, who previously served as the Japanese Ground Self-Defence Force's chief of staff, said 'the next logical step would be a landing and absorption' of the islands, which are known as the Senkakus in Japan. The uninhabited islets, long a flashpoint in Sino-Japanese ties, are controlled by Tokyo but claimed by Beijing. A Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force surveillance plane flies over the disputed Diaoyu Islands. The islands, long a flashpoint in Sino-Japanese ties, are controlled by Tokyo but claimed by Beijing. Photo: AP Iwata pointed to China's growing maritime presence around the islands over the past two years, including the frequent entry of Chinese coastguard vessels into Japanese territorial waters.
South China Morning Post
14-03-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Philippines set for ‘more robust' Balikatan joint drills, but no mention of Typhon
The Philippines is gearing up for its biggest joint military exercise this year, aimed at enhancing its defence capabilities, with observers suggesting Manila should still showcase a controversial US-made missile system that Beijing is firmly against. Advertisement Without giving detailed information on the dates and number of soldiers slated to join the drills, Brigadier General Michael Logico, Balikatan's executive agent, said last week that the 40th Balikatan exercises would be a full battle test. 'There will be participation coming from the Australian Defence Force and the Japanese Self Defence Force,' Logico told reporters at a briefing after a live fire exercise last week in Capas, Tarlac, adding he was waiting for 'newer developments from other countries' before giving further details on this year's Balikatan. Like last year, the drills will feature sinking exercises 12 nautical miles outside the Philippines' territorial waters. The Typhon missile system was deployed in the Philippines during the first phase of the Salaknib exercise in April of last year and used in the Balikatan joint exercises the following month. Advertisement Muhammad Faizal Bin Abdul Rahman, a research fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, told This Week in Asia the coming Balikatan drills would continue to serve as a deterrent against China along the first island chain, where Philippine interests in the South China Sea and the security of the Taiwan Strait were implicitly linked.
