Erschienen in Ausgabe: No 94 (12/2013) | Letzte Änderung: 10.12.13 |
von Fumio Kishida
1. On November 23rd, the Ministry of National
Defense of the People’s Republic of China announced that it has established
“the East China Sea Air Defense Identification Zone” and that aircrafts flying
in the said zone must abide by the rules set forth by the Ministry.
2. The Government of Japan expresses deep concern
about China’s establishment of such zone and obliging its own rules within the
zone, which are profoundly dangerous acts that unilaterally change the status
quo in the East China Sea, escalating the situation, and that may cause
unintended consequences in the East China Sea.
3. The announcement issued by the Chinese Ministry
of National Defense obliges aircraft flying in international airspace to abide
by its domestic procedures, and refers to the recourse to “defensive emergency
measures” by Chinese Armed Forces in case where such aircraft does not follow
the instructed procedures. The announced measures unduly infringe the freedom
of flight in international airspace, which is the general principle of
international law, and will have serious impacts on the order of international
aviation. As many flight routes of civil airplanes run across the airspace
above the East China Sea, Japan is deeply concerned about such measures from
the viewpoint of its impact on the order and safety of civil aviation.
4. The announced measures have no validity
whatsoever on Japan, and Japan demands China to revoke any measures that could
infringe upon the freedom of flight in international airspace.
5. In addition, the “zone” set by the Chinese
Ministry of National Defense seemingly describes the airspace over the Senkaku
islands, an inherent part of the territory of Japan, as if it were a part of
China’s “territorial airspace”. Japan cannot accept at all such description.
6. The Government of Japan has already made strong
protests to China, conveying the above-mentioned concerns to China, and
demanded China to revoke such measures. Concerning China’s announced acts,
Japan is working and consulting closely with its ally, the United States, and
will coordinate with other relevant countries and partners which have common
interests in the stability and safety of the region. Japan will, in partnership
with the international community, strongly urge China to exercise
self-restraint.
7. Japan will continue to respond firmly but in a
calm manner against China’s attempt to unilaterally alter the status quo by
coercive measures with determination to defend resolutely its territorial land,
sea and airspace.
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