Japan, S Korea hold joint drill in East China Sea
Iran Press TV
Thu Dec 12, 2013 1:38PM GMT
Japan and South Korea have carried out a joint naval exercise in the East China Sea, located in an area within China's new Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).
Two warships and a helicopter from Japan and several pieces of military equipment from South Korea were used for the biennial search and rescue drills held on Thursday.
A Japanese navy spokesman said the Japanese military did not inform China about the use of the helicopter.
He acknowledged that the exercise was conducted within the Chinese ADIZ but noted that the drill had been planned long before China's announcement of the zone last month.
"It was not organized in reaction,' the spokesman stressed.
On November 23, Beijing demanded that all aircraft provide their flight plans, declare their nationalities and maintain two-way radio communication before entering the airspace, or face "defensive emergency measures.'
South Korea, Japan, and the United States have all refused to recognize the ADIZ.
Tokyo and Seoul soon announced that they had flown through the zone without informing Beijing. The US also sent two unarmed bombers over the zone on November 26 to test the waters.
The East China Sea includes a cluster of Tokyo-administered islands that is also claimed by China.
The uninhabited islands, called Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, are located near a crucial shipping lane and give the owner exclusive oil, mineral and fishing rights in the surrounding waters.
MRS/AB
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