Chinese warships sail around Japan as tensions rise ahead of G7 summit

Japan’s Defense Ministry on Thursday released a map showing the Type 055 guided missile destroyer Lhasa, one of the People’s Liberation Army Navy’s most powerful warships, leading a four-ship flotilla that also included a smaller destroyer, a frigate and a supply ship on the clockwise circumnavigation.

The Japanese map shows the voyage began on April 30 in the Tsushima Strait between South Korea and Japan, progressed through the Tsugaru Strait at the northern tip of Hokkaido on May 5 and 6 and then was in the Izu island chain south of Tokyo on Thursday.

In a story published after the Japanese Defense Ministry release Thursday, China’s state-run Global Times linked the flotilla’s journey to “Japan’s recent provocative remarks” about Taiwan, the democratically ruled island over which the Chinese Communist Party claims sovereignty despite never having ruled it.

“While the voyage is likely a routine PLA Navy far sea exercise that does not violate any international law or target any third party, it could be seen as a strong message to Japan,” the Global Times report said, citing Chinese experts.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said in an interview with Nikkei Asia on Wednesday that “the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait are critical not just for our country, but for the whole international community.”

And Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi on Wednesday said Tokyo had sent a message of protest to Beijing over comments by China’s ambassador that Japan would be “dragged into the fire” if Tokyo linked Taiwan to its own security.

In an exclusive interview with CNN on Wednesday, Hayashi said Japan is in talks to open a NATO liaison office – the first of its kind in Asia – saying Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had repercussions far beyond Europe’s borders that had forced Tokyo to rethink regional security.

“We are already in discussions, but no details (have been) finalized yet,” Hayashi said.

Tensions rise before G7 summit

The Chinese circumnavigation also comes as leaders of the Group of Seven prepare to meet in Japan beginning May 19.

Chinese naval flotillas have performed circumnavigations of Japan in the past – most notably when a Chinese-Russian flotilla of 10 ships did so in October 2021 – and analysts say more can be expected as the PLA Navy more frequently flexes its muscles outside China’s nearby waters.

But the timing and route of this exercise linked with the media reports raise concerns, the analysts say.