Japan and Australia called for calm Sunday after Chinese military aircraft locked radar on Japanese fighter jets near Okinawa, escalating tensions already heightened by recent remarks from Japan's prime minister on Taiwan. Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said Japan lodged a formal protest with Beijing, calling the radar lock "extremely regrettable," "dangerous," and beyond what is necessary for safe aircraft operations. "We have lodged a strong protest with the Chinese side and demanded strict preventive measures," he said. Japan's Defense Ministry said a Chinese J-15 aircraft took off from the carrier Liaoning on Saturday and "intermittently" locked its radar onto Japanese F-15s twice — for about three minutes in the late afternoon and for about 30 minutes in the evening. It was unclear whether the same J-15 was involved in both incidents. No airspace violations, injuries or damage were reported. Japanese jets had been scrambled to shadow Chinese aircraft conducting takeoff and landing drills in the Pacific and were maintaining a safe distance when the radar lock occurred, Kyodo News reported. Senior Col. Wang Xuemeng, spokesperson for China's navy, defended the training near Miyako Island and accused Japanese aircraft of "harassment." He said Japan should "immediately stop slandering and smearing" and warned the Chinese navy would take measures to safeguard its security. Relations between the two countries have deteriorated since Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said in early November that Japan's military might intervene if China were to act against Taiwan. Australia, whose defense minister met with Koizumi in Tokyo on Sunday, expressed concern. "We are deeply concerned by the actions of China in the last 24 hours," Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles said. "We expect those interactions to be safe and professional." Marles emphasized Australia's desire for stable relations with Beijing, its largest trading partner, while opposing any unilateral change to the Taiwan Strait status quo. Japan and Australia agreed to strengthen their defense cooperation and create a new "framework for strategic defense coordination." Japan has been expanding security ties with partners beyond its treaty ally, the United States, and considers Australia a semi-ally. Marles also visited a Nagasaki shipyard Saturday to observe the upgraded Mogami-class frigate Australia selected to renew its naval fleet. Saturday's radar lock is believed to be the first involving Chinese and Japanese military aircraft, though China targeted a Japanese destroyer's radar in 2013, Kyodo reported. Fighter jets use radar for searching or for fire control before launching missiles. Separately, the Philippine coast guard said China fired three flares toward a fisheries bureau patrol plane in the South China Sea on Saturday, a warning China uses to force aircraft away from disputed airspace. — Agencies
