On Monday (October 19), the United States and Japan launched one of the largest joint exercises, the "Sharp Sword" exercise, located on Japan's southwestern islands.
About 45,000 Japanese soldiers and 12,000 American soldiers participate in the exercise.
Seven other Indo-Pacific and European countries also participate in parts of the exercise. Japan's Joint Chiefs of Staff and Supervision Bureau said that five of the countries - France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the Philippines - are participating for the first time.
The exercise will last until October 29. The Japanese and U.S. military will focus on exercises to defend Japan's southwestern islands and northern waters. The Associated Press analyzed that Japan is facing increased regional tensions from China, North Korea, and Russia. China's military activities around Japan, including in the Pacific, have increased rapidly, making Japan regard it as a threat. In recent years, Japan has deployed longer-range missiles and interceptors in the southwest region to strengthen its defense.
The exercise included amphibious landings, anti-aircraft missile defense, mine clearance, intelligence collection, logistical supplies, and casualty evacuation. The exercise took place on multiple remote islands, including Tanegashima.
One of the main exercise locations was Yonaguni Island. This is Japan's westernmost island, located just 110 kilometers east of Taiwan.
The Japan Self-Defense Force will use its domestically produced Type 25 land-based anti-ship missiles during the exercise, but it will not launch live ammunition. According to the Associated Press, the missile has a range of about 1,000 kilometers and can reach mainland China.
Japan Self-Defense Forces Chief of Staff Hiroaki Uchikura denied that the exercise was targeting a specific country.
According to Japan's Joint Staff Supervision Department, at the opening ceremony of the exercise on Ishigaki Island, Japan's Naval Self-Defense Force General Tateki Tawara said that they are not only defending territory, but also people's peaceful lives. "To this end, we must be fully prepared and work with allies and partners to prevent crises."
Relations between Japan and China have become tense since Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae's remarks a year ago that "there is something going on in Taiwan." Japan has also expressed concern about China's intensified military activities around Japan's remote islands in the Pacific.
On Tuesday (October 20), Randall Shriver, chairman of the U.S. Congressional U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, said at a forum in Taiwan that the Chinese Coast Guard’s patrols east of Taiwan are “highly destabilizing.” Since June, China has stepped up its activities in the area and carried out regular patrols.
According to the Central News Agency, Shriver said: "In the face of the new challenge of China's 'hybrid warfare', the most disturbing development in recent years is the Chinese Coast Guard's continuous patrols in the waters east of Taiwan. The seemingly benign white ship 'law enforcement' is actually an extension of legal and political warfare. If this law enforcement continues to be implemented into actual combat, it will have a highly destabilizing effect."
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs reiterated that China has an exclusive economic zone and continental shelf in the waters east of Taiwan; relevant Chinese departments carry out relevant activities in these waters, which are reasonable, legal and beyond reproach.
According to the "Taiwan News" report, at the same forum held in Taiwan, Wu Zhaoxie, secretary-general of Taiwan's National Security Council, said that China does not have any geographical borders with the sea area and has no legal basis for rights at all.
Late on Tuesday, Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense reported that China once again conducted a "joint combat readiness patrol" near Taiwan and dispatched 27 military aircraft, including H-6 bombers with nuclear strike capabilities.
