Japan Stresses ‘Urgent’ Nuclear Threat from N.Korea

Raising its pitch over tensions on the disputed South China Sea, China on Tuesday called for preparations for a “people’s war at sea” to counter offshore security threats while its top court warned foreigners of criminal liability for violations of its maritime rights.

The drills that began Monday follow China’s strident rejection of an global arbitration panel’s ruling last month that invalidated Beijing’s claims to a vast swath of the South China Sea.

China has been building airstrips and military installations on reclaimed reefs and islands in waters also claimed by a number of other Asian states.

According to a report from RT, Chang said that the People’s Liberation Army Navy has 2.3 million personnel “fully confident and capable of addressing various security threats and provocations”.

Japan’s White Paper comes less than a month after an arbitration court in the Hague invalidated China’s sweeping claims in the disputed South China Sea.

The court claimed it could issue rulings regarding waters that did not belong to China, as the Hague concluded, because “people’s courts’ jurisdiction over the Diaoyu [Japan’s Senkaku], Huangyan [Scarborough Shoal] and Xisha [Paracel] Islands and its adjacent sea areas has never stopped”.

China, which claims parts of the South China Sea that belong to Vietnam, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, and Taiwan, a well as maritime territory belonging to Indonesia, keeps attacking fishermen from the Philippines and Vietnam even as it continues military development of artificial islands there.

But Russia, like the United States, also has called for a diplomatic solution to the South China Sea disputes.

Despite China’s refusal to recognize the tribunal’s decision, the spokesperson said he is hopeful that a peaceful discussion would happen between the two countries in order to clarify the many issues surrounding the award.

The Global Times vowed that the Aussies would “learn their lesson” after supporting an worldwide judgement over China’s vast claims to the South China Sea.

“Sa side natin, maging mahinahon muna (For our side, we must remain calm for now)”, DFA spokesman Charles Jose told reporters in a chance interview at a conference called by the department to discuss how to move forward and manage tensions following the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s ruling on the suit brought by the Philippines against China.

At 484 pages, Japan’s report is more than a tenth longer than last year’s, and lays out other security concerns, such as the threat from neighbouring North Korea’s ballistic missile and nuclear bomb programmes and a revival of Russian military strength in the Far East.

Spokesperson Hua Chunying said in a statement that China made solemn representations to Japan over the irresponsible white paper.

Tiezzi said Russian Federation has a common desire with China to prevent the United States from having unopposed global leadership.

“Judicial power is an important component of national sovereignty”, the Supreme Court’s ruling was quoted by Reuters as saying.

The tribunal announced in July: ‘The Tribunal concluded that there was no legal basis for China to claim historic rights within the sea areas falling within the ‘nine-dash line’.