China vies for control of disputed islands; Japan boosts aerial surveillance

A day after its patrol plane was confronted by Japanese fighter jets over the disputed islands, China on Friday said it will “resolutely fight” for the control of disputed islands with Japan and accused Tokyo of violating post second world war order by buying the islets.
“We oppose Japanese sides illegal purchase of Diaoyu islands islands which blatantly infringe upon China’s territorial sovereignty”, Chinese Foreign Ministry, spokesman, Hong Lei told media briefing.
He was responding to a question on comments by Foreign Minister, Yang Jiechi that China would “resolutely fight” with Japan over the islands.
“The Japanese side action has violated post war international order”, Hong said.
About Japan scrambling its jet fighters to confront the first Chinese air patrol on Thursday, Hong said the uninhabited island and its affiliated islands as well as airspace and territorial waters are China’s “inherent territory and China has sovereign right over them”.
“Since September this year Japanese side has repeatedly sent ships and planes to the territorial waters of China’s Diaoyu islands. We are firmly opposed to that”, he said.
Japan lodged a diplomatic protest with China over the issue.
Hong said China repeatedly requested Japanese side to stop illegal activities of airspace in the Diaoyu islands including stop its jets from flying over the islands.
“It is quite normal for China’s maritime plane to carry out activities to define China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”, he said adding that such patrols are necessary.

“Hope Japanese side will show its sincerity and take concrete actions to solve the issue through dialogue and bring China-Japan relations back to the track of normal  development”, he said.
Earlier, Japan said it will strengthen the surveillance power of its air force, a day after the first-ever intrusion into the country’s airspace by a Chinese Government aircraft.
“We will take all possible steps for the defence of our airspace,” Osamu Fujimura, chief Cabinet secretary, told a news conference, noting that the Defence Ministry is considering “more effective operations” of the Air Self-Defence Force’s Airborne Warning and Control Systems, as well as the E-2C airborne early-warning aircraft, Kyodo news reported.
Yesterday, a Chinese Government airplane entered Japan’s airspace over the Senkaku Islands, the sovereignty of which is claimed by Beijing, for the first time since the ministry started keeping such records in 1958.
Japanese fighter jets were scrambled after the plane was spotted by the country’s coast guard at 11:06 am about 15 km south of one of the uninhabited islands in the East China Sea.
But Self-Defence Force radar did not pick up the aircraft.
Fujimura said he believes the airspace intrusion by China was aimed at claiming control over the Japanese-administrated islands, adding that the Government will “firmly deal with any action that infringes on our country’s sovereignty.”