Japan Protests China's Installation of Structures in East China Sea Amid Ongoing Tensions

Japan lodged a protest with Beijing last month over the installation of structures in the East China Sea, the Japan Times reported, marking another point of friction between the two nations. Tension has been running high between Japan and China since Beijing reacted to Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks over Taiwan in parliament last November.

Those remarks culminated in a Chinese fighter locking its radar on a Japanese F-15 in the waters off Okinawa the following month, according to the Japan Times.

In a separate incident, a man was apprehended in Tokyo on March 24 after he trespassed onto the grounds of the Chinese Embassy, the Japan Times reported via AFP-JIJI. The following day, a policeman stood guard at an entrance to the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo.

While the two governments have so far avoided acute escalation this year, tensions continue to simmer as they compete with isolated incidents and incompatible policies.

China wants to push the boundaries of the status quo, while Japan wants to assert greater leadership in promoting a “free and open” Indo-Pacific, the Japan Times reported.