Japan’s Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi Says China Did Not Issue Advance Notice About Military Drill

The Yomiuri Shimbun

18:03 JST, December 9, 2025

Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said Tuesday that China did not issue a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) or a navigation warning, regarding the incident in which Chinese military aircraft directed radar at Japanese Air Self-Defense Force fighter jets.

NOTAM is a notice to inform others that an exercise is taking place in a maritime zone or airspace.

Koizumi made the statement at a House of Representatives Budget Committee, which effectively entered deliberations on the draft supplementary budget for fiscal 2025.

“China is publicizing that it gave advance notice of its training, but we are not aware of any such notification that was issued beforehand,” Koizumi said.

He added that Japan “will respond calmly and resolutely” to China’s military activities and “make sure to use all means of surveillance and monitoring.”

On Japan-China relations, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said, “As there are existing concerns and issues, the government maintains the policy of de-escalating the situation and increasing understanding and cooperation.”

Regarding the cooling economic relations between the two countries, she said, “We’ll look closely at the situation, including the effects of a series of measures taken by China, and respond appropriately.”

On introducing legislation to allow women to keep their maiden names, she said: “It would help reduce the number of people who feel inconvenienced or at a disadvantage in society. [The government] will work the ruling parties and consider the matter further as necessary.

At an earlier meeting of the Budget Committee’s board of directors, ruling and opposition parties agreed to hold intensive deliberations and a closing question-and-answer session on Thursday.