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territorial claims in the South China Sea would greatly ease tensions that have increased after recurring confrontations in the area. "There might be a consensus that we have to reach that really pushes the matter forward to really define everybody’s entitlements and obligations," he said. Source: The Nation, 25 April 2013 ASEAN upbeat on progress on South China Sea The ASEAN chair and Brunei leader on 25 April said that progress has been made during the ongoing summit of Southeast Asian leaders to push ahead with talks with China, bringing renewed optimism to the South China Sea issue. Brunei's Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah told media during the last day of the 22nd ASEAN Summit that he was positive of the progress that has been achieved during talks between the 10 member states. He urged communication lines between the different countries to be kept open and called for stronger engagement to find a mutually acceptable solution between China and ASEAN claimants. "I believe that there are important practical procedures to achieve. For example if there is a storm at sea and fishermen shelter in the disputed waters, such an event can be misunderstood and can cause unnecessary tension," he said. "Therefore it is important to establish a practical mechanism to deal with such instances such as hot lines between the relevant countries. It is my intention to continue discussions on such points," he added. The Chairman's Statement released at the summit also detailed expectations for continued engagement with China in implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) in a "full and effective manner.""We have tasked our ministers to continue to work actively with China on the way forward for the early conclusion of a Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea on the basis of consensus," it added. Indonesia's Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa had earlier noted that there is no date set to launch formal negotiations between ASEAN and China on COC in the disputed waters. Meanwhile, the ASEAN Secretary-General Le Luong Minh said on 25 April the bloc will come to the negotiating table as a group in South China Sea talks with China. "The South China Sea issue is not just about competing claims; it's about peace and stability in the region," Le told Xinhua in an interview on the sidelines of the summit. "Of course, it should be resolved among countries involved, but it also concerns the interest of other parties, concerns peace and stability of the region," he said, adding, "The South China Sea is an important sea lane for the region and the world. Maritime security should be protected. "ASEAN is always willing and open to engage with China on this issue; we've already done this at the 19th ASEAN-China Senior Officials' Consultations. We've also agreed with the Chinese side to hold a ministerial level meeting later this year," said Le at the summit. Source: Global Times, 25 April 2013 Eight Chinese vessels enter Senkaku area Eight Chinese maritime surveillance vessels entered Japanese territorial waters on 24 April around the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea, the Japan Coast Guard said. China’s State Oceanic Administration said the vessels were there to monitor the activity of a flotilla of boats reportedly carrying members of a Japanese nationalist group. China regards the area as its territorial waters. This incident marks the highest number of Chinese ships that have entered the Japanese waters near the Senkakus since the Japanese central government purchased three of the Islands from their Saitama owner last September, and effectively nationalized the chain, according to the 11th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture. The Foreign Ministry said it summoned the Chinese ambassador and lodged a protest over the maritime activity. “It is extremely regrettable and unacceptable that Chinese state ships continue to engage in intrusion,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a news conference. “We are protesting strictly through our diplomatic channels.” The intrusion came after around 10 fishing boats carrying members of a conservative political group called Ganbare Nippon left Ishigaki Island in Okinawa and headed toward the Senkakus on 22 April night. China’s State Oceanic Administration said that after three of its marine surveillance ships — the Haijian 51, 23 and 46 — spotted the Japanese boats in the area of Uotsuri, the largest islet in Produced and Published by Observer Research Foundation 4
the Senkakus, five other ships — the Haijian 50, 15, 49, 66 and 137 — were ordered to alter course and converge on the area. Running in four formations, the eight Chinese ships monitored the Japanese ships from different angles, it said in a statement. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed to “expel by force” any Chinese landing on the islets. “We would take decisive action against any attempt to enter territorial waters and to land,” Abe told the Diet in response to questions from lawmakers. “We would never allow” a landing. “It would be natural for us to expel by force (the Chinese) if they were to make a landing,” he said. According to the 11th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters, Japan’s surveillance vessels instructed the Chinese ships to leave after they entered the area in succession between 7:20 a.m. and 8:25 a.m. Two Chinese fishery surveillance vessels were also spotted sailing in the contiguous zone outside the territorial waters around the islets, the coast guard said. Suga said he was not in a position to know China’s intent but added he did not believe the ships’ activity had anything to do with recent visits to war-linked Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo by some Cabinet members. Bilateral relations have been frayed over conflicting claims to the islets as well as visits to Yasukuni, which honors 2.5 million Japanese war dead, including 14 Class-A war criminals. Source: The Japan Times, 24 April 2013 Chinese navy patrols Diaoyu Islands on treaty anniversary A Chinese naval fleet patrolled the waters surrounding the Diaoyu Islands on 17 April, the anniversary of the signing of an unequal treaty between China and Japan in 1895. Composed of two warships, the Lanzhou missile destroyer and the Hengshui missile frigate, the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy fleet crossed the Mayako Strait on 16 th night and arrived at the waters surrounding the Diaoyu Islands early 17 th morning. The fleet finished a series of attack and defense drills in the west Pacific area after it sailed out from port. Zhao Xiaogang, the commander of the fleet, which belongs to the Nanhai Fleet, told a Xinhua correspondent aboard the Lanzhou destroyer that the navy's patrol around the Diaoyu Islands is legitimate and undisputable, as the islands are China's indispensable territory. The PLA navy patrolled on the day of historical significance, as the Treaty of Shimonoseki between the two countries was signed on April 17, 1895, following China's defeat in the first Sino-Japanese War (1894 - 1895). According to the treaty, China ceded Taiwan and its affiliated islands to Japan, and paid Japan as a war indemnity the sum of 200 million Kupingtaels. The treaty was reversed after Japan's defeat in World War II. Tensions were raised between the two neighboring countries over the islands after Japan's so-called "nationalization" of Diaoyu Island and part of its affiliated islets last year, as well as Japanese politicians' aggressive remarks over Japan- China ties. Source: Xinhua, 18 April 2013 China accuses Japan of ‘making trouble’ over Senkaku Islands China accused Japan on 16 April of “making trouble” by nationalizing the Senkaku Islands. “On the issues concerning China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, some neighbouring countries are taking actions that complicate or exacerbate the situation, and Japan is making trouble over the issue of the Diaoyu Islands,” the Chinese government said in a defense white paper, the first such report issued in two years. Diaoyu is the Chinese name for the disputed and uninhabited islets in the East China Sea. The Japanese government responded immediately by protesting the report through diplomatic channels, repeating that there is no territorial dispute between the two countries because the islets are Japanese territory. Bilateral relations have deteriorated since the central government purchased some of the islets from a Saitama businessman last September. Citing a military-civilian drill in the East China Sea last October, the paper says the People’s Liberation Army Navy has enhanced capabilities in partnership with marine surveillance and fishery administration departments to coordinate command and respond to emergencies in joint military-civilian operations to safeguard maritime rights. Titled “The Diversified Employment of China’s Armed Forces,” the paper says the Asia-Pacific region has become an increasingly significant stage for world economic Produced and Published by Observer Research Foundation 5
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