Deja vu all over again?

[Flashermac]

Chinese warships cruise near gas field claimed by Japan

 

Special to World Tribune

September 15, 2005

 

 

Five Chinese naval ships, including a guided-missile destroyer, were spotted on Sept. 9 near the Chunxiao gas field in the East China Sea ? the site of a fierce Sino-Japan territorial dispute, Tokyo military officials said.

 

A Japanese P-3C patrol plane monitored the five Chinese vessels ? including a 7,940-ton Sovremenny-class missile destroyer, two 1,702-ton Jianghu I-class missile frigates, a 23,000-ton replenishment vessel and a 6,000-ton missile observation support ship ? as they cruised near the gas field, according to the Maritime Self-Defense Force.

 

The ships were in the open sea about 290 kilometers northeast of Kume Island near Japan's southern island of Okinawa. It was the first time Japan has spotted Chinese warships near the disputed gas field, the MSDF said. The ships did not violate Japanese territorial waters and Japan's military took no action, officials said.

 

The move comes amid rising bilateral tensions after a Chinese consortium said in August it could begin drilling for natural gas in the Chunxiao gas field as early as this month despite Japan's protests.

 

Japan maintains that the Chunxiao gas field rigs, which are just on China's side of a median line that Tokyo regards as the two sides' sea boundary, are attempting to tap into a field that stretches into Japan's territory.

 

China has also built a drilling platform inside of the line that Japan regards as its sea boundary. Tokyo has demanded that Beijing stop development for fear that potentially rich reserves on the Japanese side might be sucked dry. In July, Japan granted drilling rights for the gas field to the Teikoku Oil Co.

 

The conflict over control of the sea and its possible energy resources ? particularly the undersea gas deposits in the East China Sea that lies between China's eastern coast and Japan's southern island chain of Okinawa ? has added to strains in Beijing-Tokyo relations, which have sunk to their lowest level in years.

 

Japan imports all of its oil, and because much of it passes through the seas surrounding Taiwan, feels its survival depends on keeping those seas stable. Mainland China control over Taiwan could seriously hurt Japan's access to oil, Tokyo officials fear.

[Guest]

Geeze:

 

would the heavens fall if they made a joint venture out of it and both profit ( stick it to the consumers like everyone else does)

 

must be big time face issue

[Flashermac]

You have two extremely nationalistic countries involved here. Lots of territorial disputes in this area -- between Japan and Korea and Japan and Russia too. Plus the PRC claims virtually every island or reef that might have oil near it, even though it might be much closer to the Philippines than to China.

 

Old historic rivalries involved too. Compromise doesn't seem to be part of their vocabulary.

[Nervous_Dog]

Why share something if you believe you own it 100%, plus the price of oil being so high this makes it a important issue now.

 

Australia is doing the same thing with the dili gas fields.

 

DOG