The Chinese Communist Party‘s Marine Police Law, which took effect on February 1, authorizes the marine police to decide to shoot, and is said to be a provocation against the U.S. and Japan. Japanese media said, in the past weekend, the Chinese Communist Party’s maritime police ships for two days in a row into the waters of the Diaoyu Islands, and threatened to chase Japanese fishing boats.
The Japan Coast Guard 11th District Maritime Security Headquarters said that two Chinese maritime police ships entered Japanese “territorial waters” around Diaoyutai in the early hours of Sunday (7) and tried to approach a Japanese fishing boat. In the early hours of Saturday, two Chinese maritime police vessels also chased two Japanese fishing boats in the waters of the Diaoyu Islands.
This is the second consecutive day that Chinese maritime police ships have entered the waters after the introduction of the “Maritime Police Law” last Monday (1).
The Japanese side said the two Chinese maritime police ships entered what the Japanese side called “territorial waters” when two other Chinese maritime police ships were also sailing in the nearby waters, one of which was suspected to be equipped with a machine gun.
After spotting the Chinese maritime police ships, Japan sent patrol boats on both Saturday and Sunday to warn the Chinese maritime police ships, who then left.
According to the Taiwan Free Times, on Saturday, the Japanese government considered the intrusion of Chinese maritime police ships as a “major incident” in the emergency situation, and activated the crisis management mechanism, and upgraded the Crisis Management Center of the Prime Minister’s Office. The “Information Liaison Office” has been upgraded to the “Residence Response Office” to coordinate the government’s response to the crisis.
Last Wednesday, the Japanese side expressed its “strong concern” about the Maritime Police Law to the Chinese side through the “Japan-China high-level consultation on maritime affairs” (or “China-Japan high-level consultation on maritime affairs” on the Chinese side). “. China responded that the law is “in line with international law.
The Chinese Communist Party implemented the Marine Police Law last Monday, authorizing the maritime police to use force against foreign vessels for “illegal acts” within “Chinese jurisdiction. The Philippine foreign minister protested, and Japan, the United States, Vietnam, India and other countries have expressed concern.
Radio Free Asia quoted scholars as saying that the Chinese Communist Party’s granting of paramilitary authorization to the “Second Navy” has raised regional tensions and may be part of a pressure test against the Biden administration.
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