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Japan's leader, Sanae Takaichi, committed to act "calmly and resolutely" after reports that People's Liberation Army jets acquired a radar lock on Japan's fighter jets southeast of Okinawa's primary island over the past weekend.

A Serious Incident Disclosed

As stated by Japan's Ministry of Defense, China's J-15 jets from the aircraft carrier Liaoning activated its fire-control radar on Japanese F-15s on two occasions on Saturday. This occurred happened at 1632 hours and was repeated about later. Officials noted that visual confirmation could not be obtained due to the range involved, and confirmed that no damage or casualties were reported.

"It marked an unprecedented instance Japan's defence ministry has disclosed such an incident," a report noted. Military aircraft routinely use radar to tracking purposes.

Official Objection and Counter-Claims

Reacting to Tokyo's claims, China's navy issued a declaration rejecting the report as "totally contrary to the facts." It urged Tokyo to "immediately stop making false accusations." Conversely, China asserted that Japan's SDF aircraft had "seriously endangered aviation safety" by repeatedly approaching China's exercise areas. Beijing did not mention any radar targeting.

An official for China's foreign ministry later urged Japan to "halt its dangerous moves of harassing China's routine drills and exercises."

Escalating Tensions and Regional Background

Ties between Beijing and Tokyo have worsened markedly over the past month. This cooling followed Prime Minister Takaichi remarked that an attack on Taiwan could trigger the dispatch of Japanese military should the situation posed an existential threat to Japan.

Takaichi argued that Japan could exercise its right to collective self-defence, which involves assisting an ally. She stated that her country had to "anticipate the most severe possibilities" in the Taiwan Strait.

The Japanese Defense Minister, Shinjiro Koizumi, described the radar incident as "highly risky and deeply unfortunate." Subsequently, China's envoy to Japan, Wu Jianghao, was summoned the following day.

Japan's vice-foreign minister, Funakoshi Takehiro, lodged a "formal complaint" and demanded Beijing to "guarantee that such acts are not repeated."

Longstanding Points of Contention

The two nations have a protracted territorial dispute over a group of islands, which are known as the Diaoyu in China. These tiny, unoccupied islets lie between Okinawa and Taiwan.

Furthermore, broader geopolitical frictions persist. Tokyo has been strengthening military and strategic ties with American and other partners in the Asia-Pacific region, a region where a number of nations have their own territorial and maritime disagreements with China.

Beijing, in turn, maintains extensive territorial claims in adjacent seas, a posture that has prompted international concern.