Time to regulate air defence zones to prevent conflict
Mark Valencia says tensions raised by China's newly declared air defence identification zone in the East China Sea point to the urgent need for rules of conduct to avert confrontation
On November 23, China sent an air patrol to back up its newly declared air defence identification zone over the East China Sea. Japan scrambled fighter jets in response. According to China's announcement of the zone, any military aircraft entering it would need to submit its flight plans, maintain radio communication and reply promptly to identification inquiries from Chinese authorities.
China also said that its armed forces "will adopt defensive emergency measures to respond to aircraft that do not co-operate in the identification or refuse to follow the instructions". Further complicating the situation, China's zone partially overlaps those of Japan, Taiwan and South Korea, and overlies the disputed Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands. The timing and manner of China's actions have undoubtedly complicated an already dangerous situation.
In theory, overlapping identification zones are not unusual and can be managed co-operatively
Officials and analysts in Japan and the US viewed these actions as stretching the already taut rope of China-Japan relations. Japan said that China's new zone escalated the danger of accidental "collisions" between the Chinese military and US and Japanese counterparts, and lodged a "serious protest".
US Secretary of State John Kerry issued a statement of concern, urging China "not to implement its threat to take action against aircraft that do not identify themselves or obey orders from Beijing".
US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel was more blunt. He said the imposition of the zone was a "destabilising attempt to alter the status quo in the region". Hagel reminded Beijing that the disputed islands are covered by the 1952 US-Japan security treaty and, in the event of an attack, the US is committed to fighting alongside Japan against a "common danger".
Japan indicated that aircraft from its Self Defence Force would ignore Beijing's orders to obtain its permission before entering. And Hagel said it would not change how the US conducts military operations in the region.
Backing up this statement, on Tuesday, two B-52 bombers out of Guam flew into China's new zone without "filing flight plans, radioing ahead or registering our frequencies", apparently trying to ensure the Chinese version of the zone does not add to customary law. China said that it had monitored the aircraft - but did nothing else.