Overview
- Japan confirmed that China has moored and begun operating a mobile drilling vessel on the Chinese side of the two countries’ median line, prompting a Coast Guard navigation warning on Jan. 2.
- Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said Japan lodged a strong protest and criticized the action as an attempt to establish a fait accompli despite repeated objections.
- Tokyo says the boundaries of the exclusive economic zone and continental shelf in the area are undetermined and argues the activity could tap fields that extend beneath Japan’s side.
- Officials noted roughly 20 nearby structures Japan believes are foundations linked to gas field development, as long-stalled 2008 joint-development plans remain inactive.
- The dispute coincides with Beijing’s new export controls and an anti-dumping probe targeting Japanese producers, pressuring chip-material stocks such as Shin-Etsu Chemical and Resonac Holdings.