Chinese Aircraft Carrier Liaoning Sails in Japan’s Contiguous Zone for 1st Time

The Yomiuri Shimbun

17:37 JST, September 18, 2024

The Liaoning, a Chinese Navy aircraft carrier, entered Japan’s contiguous zone on Wednesday when it sailed through an area of sea between Yonaguni Island and Iriomote Island in Okinawa Prefecture, according to Japanese government sources.

It was the first time that a Chinese aircraft carrier has sailed in Japan’s contiguous zone.

Contiguous zones are sea belts beyond territorial waters. Territorial waters extend up to 12 nautical miles (about 22 kilometers) from the shore, whereas contiguous zones extend from the edge of the territorial waters for up to a further 12 nautical miles.

A coastal country is authorized to impose restrictions on ships in contiguous zones to prevent the smuggling of goods and the trafficking of illegal immigrants. But the same level of jurisdiction found in territorial waters is not applied to contiguous zones and thus ships of any countries are allowed to sail through them.

Taiwan’s National Defense Ministry on Wednesday announced that the Liaoning had sailed through the sea northeast of Taiwan at 1:30 a.m. on the day and then continued to sail toward the southeast of Yonaguni Island.

Concerning the Chinese military, an intelligence-gathering plane intruded into Japan’s territorial airspace off the Danjo Islands in Nagasaki Prefecture late last month, and a survey ship recently intruded into Japan’s territorial waters southwest of Kuchinoerabu Island in Kagoshima Prefecture.

In response to China′s military actions conducted in the sea and the air near Japan, the Defense Ministry has been continuing warning and surveillance activities.