🇨🇳🇯🇵 China releases audio to say it notified Japan of drill in radar incident

The Chinese military on Tuesday released audio data indicating it had notified Japan of a planned carrier-based aircraft flight training prior to a weekend incident in which radar was locked on Japanese fighter jets, further heightening bilateral tensions.

Tokyo has strongly protested Saturday's action by the Chinese military aircraft on Air Self-Defense Force fighters southeast of Okinawa's main island, but Beijing has lodged a counterprotest, claiming "frequent close-in reconnaissance and disruptions" by Japanese jets caused the security risk.

The released audio data purportedly reveals a Chinese navy ship giving prior notice of the flight drill in Chinese and English, with a Japanese defense vessel responding in English that it had received the message.

#China #Japan

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🇰🇷 South Korea’s President calls for probe into links between religious group and politics

South Korea’s President Lee Jae Myung has called for an investigation into suspected illegal links between a religious group and politicians.

Lee’s ​order should apply “no matter whether (a politician is from the) ‍ruling or opposition party, a high or low position”, the presidential office said on ‍Dec 10.

Some politicians have said that Lee’s comments appeared to be directed at the Unification Church, ​whose leader Han Hak-ja is on trial over allegations she bribed former first lady Kim Keon ‌Hee in return for political favors.

#SouthKorea

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🇯🇵🇨🇳🇷🇺 Russian bombers join Chinese air patrol near Japan as Tokyo-Beijing tie strains

Japan has scrambled jets to monitor Russian and Chinese air forces conducting joint patrols around the country, the Japanese Defence Ministry said late on Dec 9, amid rising tensions between ‍Tokyo ​and Beijing.

Two Russian Tu-95 nuclear-capable strategic bombers flew from the ‍Sea of Japan toward the East China Sea to rendezvous with two Chinese H-6 bombers, and performed ​a "long-distance joint ​flight" in the Pacific, the ministry said.

Four Chinese J-16 fighter jets joined the bombers as they made a round-trip flight between Japan's Okinawa and Miyako islands, it added. The ‍Miyako Strait between the two islands is classified as international waters.

#Japan #China #Russia

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🇹🇭 Thailand’s Parliament is dissolved for new elections early next year

Thailand’s Parliament was dissolved Friday for new elections early next year in a country engaged in deadly fighting with Cambodia.

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul dissolved the House of Representatives after getting approval from King Maha Vajiralongkorn, whose endorsement became effective Friday with its publication in the Royal Gazette.

The election must be held 45 to 60 days after the royal endorsement, a period during which Anutin will head a caretaker government with limited powers that cannot approve a new budget.

#Thailand

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🇺🇸🇯🇵 US and Japan hold joint flight drills

US strategic bombers joined a fleet of Japanese fighter jets in a joint military exercise meant to demonstrate their military cooperation around Japan’s airspace, defense officials said Thursday.

The exercise showcasing joint Japanese-US air power came a day after Chinese and Russian bombers flew together around western Japan, prompting Tokyo to scramble fighter jets, though there was no airspace violation.

Two US B-52 strategic bombers and three Japanese F-35 stealth fighter jets and three F-15 jets conducted their joint flight drills near Japan’s western airspace, above the waters between the country and South Korea, officials said.

#USA #Japan

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🇹🇼🇮🇱 Taiwan's deputy foreign minister made secret trip to Israel

Taiwan's high-profile Deputy Foreign Minister Francois Wu made a previously unpublicized visit to Israel recently, three sources familiar with the trip told Reuters, at a time when Taiwan is looking to the country for defense cooperation.

The sources declined to give details of whom he met or what was discussed, including whether he touched upon Taiwan's new multi-layered air defense system called T-Dome, which President Lai Ching-te unveiled in October and is partly modelled on Israel's air defense system.

Like most other countries, Israel only officially recognizes Beijing and not Taipei, and while senior Taiwanese diplomats do travel abroad, trips to countries such as Israel are rare.

#Taiwan #Israel

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🇯🇵🇨🇳🇰🇷 Japan, China, S. Korea set for health talks amid Tokyo-Beijing dispute

Japan, China and South Korea will hold ministerial-level health talks Sunday in Seoul, the Japanese government said, amid the recent escalation of tensions between Tokyo and Beijing.

Japan's health ministry made the announcement Friday, saying Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Kenichiro Ueno will attend. China will dispatch a health ministry official in place of its minister.

China postponed a trilateral culture ministers' meeting with the two Asian nations, initially scheduled for November in Macao, after Beijing-Tokyo relations deteriorated over Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks on a Taiwan contingency.

#Japan #China #SouthKorea

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🇯🇵 Foreigners bought almost 3,500 properties near sensitive sites in Japan in FY2024: Study

A total of 3,498 properties around critical security facilities and remote islands in Japan were purchased by foreign individuals or entities in fiscal 2024, with nearly half from China, a government study showed.

The purchases were made in the vicinity of 583 locations designated as “monitored areas” or “special monitored areas” under a law governing their use that took effect in 2022.

By country or region, China accounted for the most acquisitions at 1,674, followed by Taiwan at 414, South Korea at 378 and the United States at 211.

Separately, the government announced it will demand increased disclosure from April 2026 when corporations attempt to acquire forested lands or properties deemed of national security importance, such as requiring them to disclose the nationalities of company heads in registration forms.

#Japan

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🇨🇳 No ‘out-of-pocket expenses’ for childbirth in China from 2026

China will cover all out-of-pocket expenses related to childbirth in 2026, said the country’s national healthcare security administration, as the authorities try to incentivize more young ​couples to have children.

By 2026, China will aim to offer nationwide full reimbursement for all policy-covered medical expenses related to childbirth, including pre-natal check-ups, ​the ​administration said.

It would “improve the level of medical expense coverage for prenatal examinations, striving to achieve ‘no out-of-pocket expenses’ for childbirth”, it said in a report on Dec 13.

#China

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🇨🇳🇯🇵🇹🇼 China sanctions ex-Japan SDF chief Iwasaki who serves as Taiwan adviser

China said it has imposed sanctions on Shigeru Iwasaki, a former chief of the Joint Staff of the Japan Self-Defense Forces who serves as a political consultant for Taiwan's Cabinet.

According to China's Foreign Ministry, the sanctions include denying Iwasaki a visa to enter China, Hong Kong and Macao, freezing his properties in mainland China and banning him from engaging in transactions and cooperation between mainland organizations and individuals.

In June, Iwasaki took part in a two-day tabletop war game in Taipei simulating a 2030 armed attack on Taiwan by mainland China, with retired military officers from Japan and the United States also joining.

#China #Japan #Taiwan

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🇺🇸🇹🇼 US approves $11.1 billion arms package for Taiwan, largest ever

The United States on Wednesday approved $11.1 billion in arms sales to Taiwan, the largest ever US weapons package for the island which is under increasing military pressure from China.

The Taiwan arms sale announcement is the second under US President Donald Trump's current administration, and comes as Beijing ramps up its military and diplomatic pressure against Taiwan, whose government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims.

The proposed arms sale covers eight items, including HIMARS rocket systems, howitzers, Javelin anti-tank missiles, Altius loitering munition drones and parts for other equipment, Taiwan's defense ministry said in a statement.

Pushed by the United States, Taiwan has been working to transform its armed forces to be able to wage "asymmetric warfare", using mobile, smaller and often cheaper weapons which still pack a targeted punch, like drones.

#USA #Taiwan

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🇨🇳🇹🇼 China's newest aircraft carrier sailed through Taiwan Strait, Taipei says

China's newest and most advanced aircraft carrier, the Fujian, sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday, Taiwan's defense ministry said, its first transit of the sensitive waterway since formally entering service last month.

The ministry showed a grainy, black-and-white picture of the carrier with no aircraft on its deck. It did not say where the picture was taken and offered no other details.

Speaking to lawmakers, Taiwan Defense Minister Wellington Koo said the ship was probably on its way to Shanghai's Changxing island, which is home to China's main naval shipbuilding yard, and that the ministry had not noticed it carrying out any military activities.

#China #Taiwan

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🇰🇭🇹🇭🇲🇾 Cambodia, Thailand agree to attend ASEAN Foreign Ministers

Cambodia and Thailand have both agreed to attend the ASEAN Foreign Ministers special meeting on Dec 22 in Kuala Lumpur to kick-start talks to prevent further escalation along the disputed border, said Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

The Prime Minister said the special ASEAN Foreign Ministers meeting was initially scheduled on Dec 16 but was later postponed, as his counterparts had expressed concerns that the meeting would have taken place too soon.

Anwar said the aim of the meeting is to convince Thailand and Cambodia to stop escalating tensions along the disputed borders.

#Cambodia #Thailand

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🇨🇳🇯🇵 Hotels and stores in Japan suffer amid cancellations by Chinese tourists

The Chinese government’s advisory against travelling to Japan has severely blunted the growth in Chinese visitors to the nation, hurting sales at Japanese department stores and causing a flood of cancellations at hotels in tourist areas.

Many tourism businesses are concerned that the situation could drag on as the Lunar New Year holiday in February approaches.

According to a survey of businesses across the nation from Dec 5 to 9, conducted by Teikoku Databank, 42.8% of respondents said the Chinese government’s advisory would have a “negative impact” on the Japanese economy.

This figure shot up to 53.8% among companies in the shipping and warehousing industry, which includes passenger transport businesses and travel businesses. The figure was noticeably higher in this industry compared to other sectors.

#China #Japan

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🇯🇵 Japan should have nuclear weapons, official reportedly says

A senior government official who advises Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on security has expressed a personal opinion that Japan should have nuclear weapons, according to local media reports.

The official added that there was no discussion within the government on that possibility and acknowledged that it would be realistically difficult to achieve, the reports said.

The comments come at a sensitive time for Japan amid a tense security environment in East Asia. Tokyo and Beijing are currently locked in a simmering dispute over comments Takaichi made about Taiwan and the theoretical possibility of Japan aiding other countries in a contingency.

#Japan

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🇺🇸🇯🇵🇨🇳 US lawmakers rebuke China's "coercion" of Japan amid spat over Taiwan

A bipartisan group of US senators have submitted a resolution condemning China for its use of "economic, military and diplomatic coercion" against Japan over Taiwan.

The move came as China maintains its hard-line stance toward Japan in the wake of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks in parliament last month. She suggested an attack on Taiwan could constitute an existential threat to Japan and thus prompt its defense forces to engage along with its alliance partner, the United States, under its right to collective self-defense.

The resolution cited China's actions since Takaichi's Nov. 7 remarks, which were made in response to a hypothetical question from an opposition lawmaker about a Taiwan contingency.

Such actions included China urging its citizens not to travel to Japan and sending coast guard vessels to waters near the Tokyo-controlled, Beijing-claimed Senkaku Islands.

#USA #Japan #China

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