China fired warning shots at Japan destroyer in 2024 entry: sources

TOKYO – Chinese vessels fired at least two warning shots at a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer in July last year when it inadvertently entered Chinese territorial waters off the country’s eastern province of Zhejiang despite repeated warnings, diplomatic sources said Sunday.

The Suzutsuki was tasked with monitoring Chinese military drills on the high seas. The rare move by the Chinese vessels suggests the two Asian neighbors were in a touch-and-go situation that could have escalated into a conflict.

The sources said the destroyer’s electronic navigational chart did not show the boundary between the high seas and other countries’ territorial waters because a switch was not turned on, causing the Suzutsuki to enter Chinese waters without realizing it.

Tokyo and Beijing did not use their defense hotline to communicate over the incident, raising questions about the direct line’s effectiveness in crisis management.

In the early morning of July 4, 2024, the Suzutsuki sailed for some 20 minutes in Chinese waters, within 12 nautical miles (22 kilometers) of the coast of Zhejiang.

After repeatedly urging the Japanese destroyer to change course, the Chinese vessels fired a warning shot just before the Suzutsuki entered Chinese territorial waters and another after it had crossed into the area, the sources said.

One of the sources stressed the need for vessels to ensure their navigational charts display boundaries when sailing near other countries’ territorial waters.

The incident triggered a protest from China. Tokyo has unofficially informed Beijing that it was caused by a technical error, with the captain not aware of the destroyer’s exact location, according to the sources.

The MSDF later dismissed the captain for negligence. The Japanese government has not made public its findings about the incident, given that they concern operations of the Self-Defense Forces.

Jun Tsuruta, associate professor of international law at Meiji Gakuin University in Tokyo, said China needs to explain whether it had a “justifiable reason” to use force, as international law grants vessels the right of innocent passage through other countries’ territorial waters.

China regularly sends its military and coast guard vessels into Japanese territorial waters near the Tokyo-controlled Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea, which Beijing claims and calls Diaoyu.