Japan and US reject China's air defence zone, says Japanese minister

Reuters in Tokyo and Washington
theguardian.com, Monday 2 December 2013 10.23 GMT

Japan said on Monday that Tokyo and Washington have both rejected Beijing's move to set up an air defence zone that includes islands at the heart of a bitter Sino-Japanese territorial feud.

The announcement comes as the US vice-president, Joe Biden, prepares for a trip to Asia this week, during which he will seek to reach a delicate balance between calming military tensions with China and backing ally Japan.

Three US airlines, acting on government advice, are notifying China of their plans to use the airspace of the disputed zone. Washington said at the weekend this did not mean US acceptance of the Chinese flight zone and last week sent two B-52 bombers into the area without informing China.

"The US government has made it clear that it is deeply concerned about China's establishment of the air defence identification zone, and that it will not accept China's demands regarding operations in the zone," the Japanese chief cabinet secretary, Yoshihide Suga, told a news conference.

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