The disputed Diaoyu Islands

[Graham]

This is becoming a bit of a hot topic now, , , ,

On the news almost every other night.

President Hu Jintao urged the Japanese government on Sunday to realize the seriousness of the tension over the Diaoyu Islands and stop plans for "nationalization", saying Beijing will not recognize the "purchase" of the islands by the Japanese under any circumstances.


China air defence/offence

Some huge amount of aircraft, they might not me the top cutting edge, but shear numbers, , OMG !

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Gra.

 

[Gary Stockton]

Nice warm-up for me for the Airshow on Saturday

Never mind, Graham, if they build runways like they do roads and bridges, they won't take-off or land ...

 

[Graham]

Oh, you just reminded me.

They weighed one of the trucks, with the load that fell off.

65,7 tones !!!

Gra.

 

[Graham]

It's going to get worse before it gets better, , , ,

In today's news.

The military said on Tuesday it "reserves the right" to take action on the Diaoyu Islands after the Japanese government ignored warnings from Beijing and "purchased" three of the islands, which belong to China.


Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda announced a plan in July to "nationalize" the islands, a move that prompted immediate protests from Beijing.

Defense Ministry spokesman Geng Yansheng said on Tuesday that "we are closely watching the development of the situation, and we reserve the right to take countermeasures".


The Diaoyu Islands have been part of China's territory for centuries and this is supported by historical fact and jurisprudential evidence. The Japanese government's "purchase" of the islands is totally illegal and invalid.

China's armed forces on Tuesday vowed unwavering determination and will to guard its territorial sovereignty, in a statement issued by the Defense Ministry.



Gra

 

[Graham]

The history of these small islands is really quite interesting.

Now China has placed two patrol vessels in the immediate area.
This is hotting up the anti.

http://wiki.china.org.cn/wiki/index.php/The_Diaoyu_Islands

<snip>China's earliest record of the Diaoyu Islands can be traced back to the Sui Dynasty, more than 1,000 years ago. At the time, China's Taiwan and the Diaoyu Islands were close to another independent state called Ryukyu (琉球国). And Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty (隋炀帝) sent Zhu Kuan (朱宽) as a special emissary to win it over and demand it pledge allegiance to the Sui Court. In the 14th century, Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty (明太祖) was known far and wide for his military prowess. Thus, the King of Ryukyu started to pay tribute to the imperial court officially and Ryukyu became a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty.<snip>

<snip>But after the Sino-Japanese war of 1894-1895, Japan forcibly took Taiwan and its subsidiary islands by compelling the Qing government to sign the Treaty of Shimonoseki (马关条约), under which China ceded the whole island of Taiwan and its surrounding islands including the Penghu Islands to Japan. Only since then has Japan had its own name for the area where the Diaoyu islands are located. Before that, Japanese maps marked the islands by their Chinese names.<snip>

Gra.

 

[Graham]

Military Practice drills

I must say, there has been LESS air activity from where I am here in Weifang.
Just the occasional pair of fast jets flying overhead.

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The People's Liberation Army conducted a series of military drills over the past few weeks to fine-tune its capabilities of amphibious operations, Chinese media have reported.


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Four fighter planes with the Jinan Military Command Area fl y in formation during a training exercise on Sunday. CUI WENBIN / FOR CHINA DAILY

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The Nanjing Military Command Area held a live-ammunition drill landing combat troops. Three landing ships carrying armored forces landed near the shore, releasing dozens of amphibian tanks, China Central Television reported.
The troops underwent a simulated attack using live gunfire starting about 3 kilometers from the shore. They used a smokescreen device to conceal their movements, and their assault was supported by remote artillery fire.
More than 10,000 soldiers and 1,000 armored vehicles took part in the drill, which lasted for more than 20 days in August. Landing craft and combat vessels from the navy, and the air force's ground attack aircraft, bombers and fighter jets, as well as attack helicopters from the ground force's aviation wing also played big roles in the drill. The troops faced unexpected difficulties, such as a typhoon, and examined and improved their joint operations, Nanfang Daily reported.
The Nanjing Military Command Area conducted a night drill involving artillery and anti-aircraft crews on Thursday and gained experience in exchanging information between the units, gathering intelligence and evaluating the enemy's damage and firepower coordination, according to people.com.cn, a website affiliated with People's Daily.
The Jinan Military Command Area conducted an amphibious landing drill involving a group of commandos. They trained in a variety of scenarios including infiltrating an uninhabited island, fighting in various settings on the island, clearing land mines and occupying an enemy command site.
The missile force of the Jinan Military Command Area launched 16 short-range missiles during the drill and destroyed all targets, according to Nanfang Daily.
The Guangzhou Military Command Area also conducted a string of drills.
A large-scale exercise was carried out along the costal areas to test the command area's capabilities in amphibious operations. Another drill was performed in a mountainous region involving self-propelled artillery vehicles, main battle tanks and attack helicopters, Nanfang Daily reported.
Drills in the Chengdu Military Command Area focused on improving anti-aircraft forces, the report said.
The PLA East China Sea Fleet staged a large-scale military exercise using live ammunition in the East China Sea, CCTV reported on Sunday.
All the main combat forces of the fleet participated in the drill, designed to strengthen the joint-operations capability. More than 40 missiles were launched during the drill, CCTV said.

Gra.

 

[Graham]

And it is warming up still

Military planes on "routine flights" over East China Sea


(Xinhua)

08:09, January 14, 2013

BEIJING, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- A Foreign Ministry spokesman said Friday that Chinese military planes were on "routine flights" in relevant airspace over the East China Sea.

<snipped>
Spokesman Hong Lei made the remarks at a press briefing in response to media reports that Japan sent fighter jets to head off a number of Chinese military planes spotted in Japan's "air defense identification zone" over the East China Sea on Thursday.

"China firmly opposes Japan's moves to gratuitously escalate the situation and create tensions," Hong said.

Relations between Japan and China have soured since the Japanese government said it would "purchase" part of the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea in 2012. China insists that the islands are part of its inherent territory.
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So now from shouting at each other, then the Japanese moved onto water cannons.
Then the Chinese sent up a marine surveillance plane.
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The Japanese responded and sent up fighter planes, to escort the Chinese plane away.

What next?

Gra.