Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

 
  • Increase font size
  • Default font size
  • Decrease font size
Home The News News Japan may place troops close to disputed islands

Japan may place troops close to disputed islands

Tokyo is considering placing troops on a remote Japanese island in the East China Sea to monitor China’s expanded naval activities that have worried its neighbors, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported yesterday.

The defense ministry wishes to create a “coastal security surveillance team” with the main mission to radar-monitor Chinese naval activities, the newspaper said, citing ministry sources.

Japanese defense officials were considering placing about 200 troops on Yonaguni, Japan’s westernmost island, roughly 100km east of Taiwan, the paper said.

The Japanese military regularly sends patrol aircraft to the region, but has no permanent monitoring facility there, the report said.

However, a defense ministry official denied the report, saying no such decision has been made.

Increased Chinese naval activity has led Japan into mulling the deployment of more forces to its scattered southern islands and away from Cold War-era locations in the north near Russia.

In an incident on April 23, a large Chinese flotilla ventured near a group of disputed islands close to Okinawa in the East China Sea and sent out a helicopter that buzzed Japanese navy ships monitoring their movement. Tokyo lodged a protest with Beijing after the helicopter flew within 90m of one of its ships.



Source: Taipei Times - 2010/11/10



Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites
Reddit! Del.icio.us! Mixx! Google! Live! Facebook! StumbleUpon! Facebook! Twitter!  
 

Newsflash


Democratic Progressive Party legislators Cheng Li-chiun, left, Chen Chi-mai, center, and Yeh Yi-jin tell a press conference in Taipei yesterday about the party’s plans to issue a recall of President Ma Ying-jeou or overturn the Cabinet.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times

Multiple constitutional mechanisms, including a recall of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and a no-confidence motion against the Cabinet, should be enacted simultaneously to hold Ma accountable for infringing the Constitution and staging political persecutions that have destabilized the country, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers said at a press conference in Taipei yesterday.

DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said separately that the party would take whatever action is needed within two weeks if Ma does not apologize for his mistakes and step down.