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Alcott Wei

China has accused Japanese warplanes and ships of carrying out multiple “provocations” and surveillance operations during a carrier group’s deployment to the western Pacific for live-fire exercises.
State broadcaster CCTV released a video on Monday showing at least four “close-range” encounters, and said the Liaoning carrier group had “warned off” the warships and surveillance planes.
It included footage of Japanese warships as well as clips of aircraft, at least one of which appeared to have been taken in the air.
Beijing has not disclosed the specific locations and dates of these encounters. Japan has not yet responded to the accusations.
CCTV said the carrier strike group returned to its home port of Qingdao on Monday after completing a 40-day long-range combat training exercise in areas including the South China Sea and western Pacific.
“During the training exercise, Japanese ships and aircraft repeatedly tracked, monitored, harassed and provoked the Chinese at close range,” CCTV said.
“The Liaoning carrier strike group maintained a high state of alert throughout, continuously organising carrier-based aircraft combat take-offs, flexibly changing combat formations, and professionally and prudently handling dangerous actions by the Japanese side.”
Earlier this month the Chinese defence ministry said the drills were part of a standard training programme and “not directed against any specific country or target”.


Ministry spokesman Zhang Xiaogang said: “During the training, the Japanese repeatedly tracked and surveilled the group, and the Chinese naval formation responded in accordance with laws and regulations.”
He added: “Japan’s hype surrounding China’s legitimate actions is an attempt to create tension and mislead public opinion; this will not succeed.”
Japan has released regular updates on the carrier group’s activities since it began the training exercise in May.
On Monday, it released photos of three warships and said it had sent the destroyer Asahi and a P-3C patrol aircraft to monitor the Liaoning along with a Type 055 and 052D destroyer as they passed through the Miyako Strait in the Ryukyu Islands two days earlier.
The Japanese defence ministry has previously said its ships had monitored the formation’s activities east of the Philippines and had observed around 170 take-offs and landings from the carrier in waters south of Japan over a three-day period in late May.
Tensions have been running high between the two countries in recent months, as Tokyo adopts a more assertive stance internationally.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi angered Beijing in November, when she said an attack on Taiwan might trigger military intervention.

Last month, Beijing strongly criticised moves by Tokyo and the Philippines to start negotiations on their maritime boundaries, including exclusive economic zones and the continental shelf in the waters near Taiwan.
Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China and has never renounced the use of force to reunite it with the mainland. Most countries – including Japan and the Philippines – do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state.
Takaichi’s government is also pushing to revise its defence policy framework to take a more active stance – a shift condemned by China as a revival of the militaristic ideology that drove Japan’s aggression during World War II.


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State media airs footage of several encounters involving warships and planes during the Liaoning carrier group’s recent operations in the Pacific


State media airs footage of several encounters involving warships and planes during the Liaoning carrier group’s recent operations in the Pacific.


China says it warned off multiple Japanese ‘provocations’ during aircraft carrier drills

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}State media airs footage of several encounters involving warships and planes during the Liaoning carrier group’s recent operations in the Pacific

State media airs footage of several encounters involving warships and planes during the Liaoning carrier group’s recent operations in the Pacific