2020/8/3
Continuation from the Previous Chapter
Further Invasion of the Senkaku Islands
In late June of this year, video footage was distributed across Japanese internet television platforms showing fishing boats from Ishigaki Island returning from the waters near the Senkaku Islands.
This footage was deeply alarming to researchers specializing in maritime security.
A Japanese fishing vessel is seen speeding through the waters.
Chasing behind it is a large Chinese patrol ship.
A Japan Coast Guard vessel squeezes between them, trying to separate the Chinese and Japanese vessels.
To any viewer, it appears as though the Japanese fishing boat is fleeing from the pursuing Chinese vessel.
And once the fishing boat and Japan Coast Guard ship depart from the area near the Senkakus, the Chinese patrol ship promptly returns to the surrounding waters, behaving as though it had successfully completed a security operation.
Ironically, this footage ends up portraying China as if it were the one policing and protecting the Senkaku Islands—a deeply damaging impression from the standpoint of Japan’s territorial claim.
The very act of fishing near the islands out of patriotic duty has, in effect, been turned into visual evidence favoring China’s assertion of control.
Sankei Shimbun journalist Rui Sasaki, speaking on the YouTube program Channel Seiron, remarked that the footage made it look as if Japan and China were “jointly managing” the islands.
At the very least, it no longer reflects a situation of full Japanese administrative control.
This summer, along the coastal areas from Zhejiang Province to Fujian Province in China, an enormous number of fishing vessels have been anchored.
So many, in fact, that the ports cannot accommodate them, forcing fleets to drop anchor in bays and behind islands in massive flotillas.
It is said that as many as 10,000 boats may be waiting in these areas.
Since May, China has imposed seasonal fishing bans in various waters, including the East China Sea, typically lasting for about three months.
In August, however, these bans are lifted region by region—in the South China Sea, the East China Sea, and elsewhere.
When that time comes, the fleets will sail out to the designated zones assigned by the Chinese Communist Party.
For China, these fishing fleets are not just about harvesting seafood—they serve as the vanguard of maritime expansion, often referred to as maritime militias.
If more than 1,000 of these maritime militia vessels were to deploy into the East China Sea in August, the region would likely descend into chaos.
To prepare for this, the Japanese government must urgently implement policies that clearly and unambiguously demonstrate that the Senkaku Islands are under Japan’s administration.
The most effective strategy would be to establish a stable and economically viable environment in which local fishermen can operate with confidence.
To do so, it is essential to coordinate the expertise and operations of not only the Japan Coast Guard but also the Fisheries Agency, the Meteorological Agency, and other relevant ministries.
Comprehensive oceanographic and island surveys are indispensable.
Above all, it must not be forgotten that island defense lies at the very foundation of all these efforts.
Demonstrating both domestically and internationally that Japan possesses the capacity to defend its islands is essential to deterring territorial aggression.
The establishment of a robust island defense system is now a matter of urgent national priority.
