Japan and US drills simulate response to a seaborne invasion, reflecting anxieties about China

Japan and China have been involved in a long-running dispute over the sovereignty of a small archipelago between the nations

The military exercises underline Japan’s resolve to protect the integrity of its territory

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The uninhabited islands are known as the Diaoyus in China and the Senkakus in Japan. Photo: AFP

Published: 5:46pm, 19 Sep 2019Updated: 9:49pm, 19 Sep 2019

Japanese and US military units have for the first time carried out joint manoeuvres using anti-shipping missiles, simulating a response to a seaborne invasion of Japanese territory.

The exercises were conducted this week at the Oyanohara training facility in Kyushu, southern Japan, underlining Tokyo’s resolve to protect the integrity of its territory, in particular its outlying islands.

Japan and China are involved in a long-running dispute over the sovereignty of the small archipelago between the nations. Known as the Diaoyus in China, the chain of uninhabited islands is referred to as the Senkakus in Japan.

A unit of Japan’s Ground Self-Defence Forces (GSDF) fired a number of Type 12 surface-to-ship missiles during the exercise, while US Army units used the high-mobility artillery rocket system (HIMARS). The launches were part of ongoing Orient Shield 19 drills.

“This is clearly designed to serve as a demonstration of alliance cooperation and the developing capability of Japan’s ground forces to project defensive power throughout the western territories of Japan,” said Garren Mulloy, a professor of international relations at Daito Bunka University and an expert on defence issues.

“No one in government or the military is stating that this is about China, but it’s obvious that there is a message here.”

The US has some of the most sophisticated weapons systems in the world but Mulloy said the US will have on this occasion taken some cues from Japan.