Japan deploys 12 coast guard ships to patrol disputed Diaoyu Islands

The Japan Coast Guard said on Monday it has finished deploying 12 ships to exclusively patrol areas around Japanese-controlled, Chinese-claimed islands in the East China Sea amid China’s growing maritime assertiveness.

The fleet, consisting of 10 newly built 1,500 tonne patrol ships and two helicopter-equipped patrol vessels, will become fully operational this month as part of efforts to strengthen protection of waters off the Diaoyu Islands, which are called the Senkaku Islands in Japan.

After tensions heightened with China following the Japanese government’s purchase of most of the islands from a private Japanese owner in September 2012, the Japan Coast Guard’s 11th regional headquarters, which is based in Okinawa and oversees the area, has received help from other regions to patrol the Diaoyus.

But the 11th Regional Coast Guard will in principle no longer need help from other regions thanks to the fresh deployment of ships, while other regional coast guards will be able to focus on maritime accidents and other activities in their own areas, according to the Japan Coast Guard.

The 10 newly built ships, equipped with 20mm guns and water cannons, are 96 metres in length and capable of high-speed cruising. The two other ships have been transferred from other regional coast guards and undergone refurbishment.