Unidentified submarine intrudes near Okinawa
14.11.2004 um 02:11An unidentified submarine briefly entered Japan's territorial waters off the Okinawa Islands early Wednesday, and Maritime Self-Defense Force patrol aircraft were sent to track it.
Although some media reported that the Defense Agency believed it was a Chinese nuclear-powered submarine, government officials rejected such speculation and said it had yet to confirm the submerged vessel's nationality.
But a government source, speaking on condition of anonymity, did say later Wednesday it was highly likely the submarine is nuclear-powered, given its noise patterns.
"(Its nationality) is not yet known, but we're tracking it," Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda told a news conference Wednesday morning.
The government will take "appropriate measures" once details pertaining to the sub, including its nationality and the reason it was in Japanese waters, become known, he added.
According to Hosoda, the government confirmed early Wednesday the submarine was cruising submerged in Japan's territorial seas near the Sakishima Archipelago, some 400 km southwest of the main island of Okinawa Prefecture.
Under international law, a submarine must surface and raise its national flag while navigating in the territorial waters of a foreign country. However, this sub had not done so.
The violation prompted Defense Agency chief Yoshinori Ono to order the MSDF to carry out a Maritime Security Operation at 8:45 a.m., after gaining the approval of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.
A Maritime Security Operation is maritime patrol and police work that is tasked to the MSDF only when the Japan Coast Guard is deemed to be unable to cope with the situation. This is the second time such an operation, which is stipulated under Article 82 of the SDF Law, has ever been ordered.
The first was in March 1999, when two suspected North Korean spy ships were spotted and chased by MSDF ships off the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture.
"It's regrettable," Koizumi told reporters at the Prime Minister's Official Residence in the afternoon. "It's not good that a submarine of unknown nationality entered our country's territorial waters."
During an afternoon news conference, Hosoda said the submarine had already left Japan's waters when the order was issued to the MSDF.
The government's top spokesman, however, refused to comment on how the government detected the submarine in the first place, saying that to do so would violate operational security.
Government officials also declined to speculate about the submarine's mission.
"We need to act firmly, peacefully and swiftly because what is at issue here is an intrusion into territorial waters," Ono told reporters in the evening, adding he could not disclose the sub's nationality.
"What is important is to find the submarine as soon as possible for the defense of Japan," he said. "We must solve this problem with a resolute attitude."
The East China Sea holds strategic importance for Japan and China, in terms of both maritime security and natural resources.
The MSDF said its patrols this year have spotted Chinese military ships 10 times and Chinese scientific research ships 16 times inside Japan's Economic Exclusive Zone in the East China Sea.
Tokyo has been concerned about the sightings, often made without advance notice as the two sides have agreed.
At his afternoon briefing, Hosoda said the MSDF's P-3C patrol planes were still tracking the submarine as it navigated international waters, but he did not reveal any further details.
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Although some media reported that the Defense Agency believed it was a Chinese nuclear-powered submarine, government officials rejected such speculation and said it had yet to confirm the submerged vessel's nationality.
But a government source, speaking on condition of anonymity, did say later Wednesday it was highly likely the submarine is nuclear-powered, given its noise patterns.
"(Its nationality) is not yet known, but we're tracking it," Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda told a news conference Wednesday morning.
The government will take "appropriate measures" once details pertaining to the sub, including its nationality and the reason it was in Japanese waters, become known, he added.
According to Hosoda, the government confirmed early Wednesday the submarine was cruising submerged in Japan's territorial seas near the Sakishima Archipelago, some 400 km southwest of the main island of Okinawa Prefecture.
Under international law, a submarine must surface and raise its national flag while navigating in the territorial waters of a foreign country. However, this sub had not done so.
The violation prompted Defense Agency chief Yoshinori Ono to order the MSDF to carry out a Maritime Security Operation at 8:45 a.m., after gaining the approval of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.
A Maritime Security Operation is maritime patrol and police work that is tasked to the MSDF only when the Japan Coast Guard is deemed to be unable to cope with the situation. This is the second time such an operation, which is stipulated under Article 82 of the SDF Law, has ever been ordered.
The first was in March 1999, when two suspected North Korean spy ships were spotted and chased by MSDF ships off the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture.
"It's regrettable," Koizumi told reporters at the Prime Minister's Official Residence in the afternoon. "It's not good that a submarine of unknown nationality entered our country's territorial waters."
During an afternoon news conference, Hosoda said the submarine had already left Japan's waters when the order was issued to the MSDF.
The government's top spokesman, however, refused to comment on how the government detected the submarine in the first place, saying that to do so would violate operational security.
Government officials also declined to speculate about the submarine's mission.
"We need to act firmly, peacefully and swiftly because what is at issue here is an intrusion into territorial waters," Ono told reporters in the evening, adding he could not disclose the sub's nationality.
"What is important is to find the submarine as soon as possible for the defense of Japan," he said. "We must solve this problem with a resolute attitude."
The East China Sea holds strategic importance for Japan and China, in terms of both maritime security and natural resources.
The MSDF said its patrols this year have spotted Chinese military ships 10 times and Chinese scientific research ships 16 times inside Japan's Economic Exclusive Zone in the East China Sea.
Tokyo has been concerned about the sightings, often made without advance notice as the two sides have agreed.
At his afternoon briefing, Hosoda said the MSDF's P-3C patrol planes were still tracking the submarine as it navigated international waters, but he did not reveal any further details.
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