SAN DIEGO (AP) — Japanese troops will converge on California’s southern coast in the next two weeks as part of an unprecedented military exercise with U.S. troops aimed at improving that country’s amphibious attack abilities.

U.S. and Japanese military officials said the training will help Japan’s Self-Defense Force better respond to crises such as natural disasters. But China may see it differently, given the tensions between Tokyo and Beijing over islands claimed by both in the East China Sea.

“It’s another dot that the Chinese will connect to show this significant expanding military cooperation,” said Tai Ming Cheung, an analyst of Chinese and East Asian security affairs and director of the Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation at the University of California, San Diego.

The drill comes just days after Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit with President Barack Obama at a California estate, where they discussed topics including the Pacific region’s mounting tensions.

China asked the United States and Japan to cancel the drill, scheduled to begin Tuesday, Japan’s Kyodo News service reported, citing unnamed Japanese government sources. The Japanese Defense and Foreign Ministries would not confirm whether China had made any request but said they are going ahead with the exercises.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not respond to The Associated Press for comment on whether China requested a cancellation. In regard to the drill itself, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said: “We hope the relevant sides can focus on peace and stability in this region, and do more to contribute to mutual trust and regional peace and stability.”

U.S. military officials said strengthening Japan’s amphibious capabilities is vital as the U.S. focuses more attention on developing an Asia-Pacific strategy amid ongoing Defense Department budget cuts. The region has been roiled by tensions due to North Korean long-range rocket and nuclear tests and maritime territorial disputes between China and its neighbors.

“If the 20^th century taught us anything, it is that when democracies are able and willing to defend themselves, it preserves peace and stability,” said Col. Grant Newsham, Marine liaison to the Japanese military. “Most Asian countries welcome — even if quietly stated — a more capable (Japanese force) that is also closely allied to U.S. forces.”

China recently asserted its dominance over what they call Diaoyutai, and Japan calls the Senkaku Islands, by sending government ships into Japanese territorial waters in April. China has said it is only safeguarding its sovereignty.

The uninhabited islands are controlled by Japan but also claimed by China. Japan’s nationalization of the islands in September triggered violent protests across China. Beijing has increasingly patrolled the area, prompting Japan to dispatch fighter jets to monitor Chinese aircraft, raising the risk of missteps that could trigger a clash.

Japan’s navy is among the world’s best-equipped and best-trained, but its skills at storming beaches and other amphibious capabilities have been weak since its national defense force formed in the 1950s.

Largely in response to China’s growing military might — including the acquisition of its first aircraft carrier last year — Japan has been buying amphibious landing craft and strengthening training for potential conflicts in or around small islands. Japan is also repositioning its troops to better monitor and defend its southern borders and sea lanes.

This exercise marks the first time the country’s troops will travel aboard warships so far from home, and members of Japanese air, sea and ground forces will train together with the U.S. military, said Cmdr. Takashi Inoue, spokesman for the Japanese Self-Defense Force.

The drill, which ends June 28, will train Japanese troops “on truly necessary” skills to help them deploy swiftly, whether to defend territory or provide disaster relief, Inoue said. With limited landing craft, Japan needed help from U.S. Marines to rescue people along its tsunami-devastated coast following the 2011 earthquake.

Japan is sending three warships, about 1,000 service members and about four combat helicopters to the so-called Dawn Blitz exercise, Inoue said. Forces from New Zealand and Canada also will take part.

Tokyo’s move to boost its amphibious training is “hugely significant” since the United States is obligated to defend Japanese territory under a post-World War II security pact, said Kerry Gershaneck of the Pacific Forum-Center for Strategic & International Studies.

“We cannot ask young American Marines to fight and die doing a job that Japanese forces cannot, or will not, do,” he said. “The U.S. Marines will help, but they must have a capable partner.”

Associated Press, June 10, 201
http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20130610p2g00m0dm002000c.html

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 Special SDF isle assault unit in works

The Defense Ministry is considering creating a new assault unit whose mission is to recapture remote Japanese islands that are vulnerable to foreign invasion, officials said.

The ministry’s plan, unveiled during a meeting of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, comes in response to repeated intrusions by Chinese vessels into waters near the Japanese-administered Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea, the officials said.

The ministry expects the formation of the new unit to be included in the defense program outline, after assessing that existing forces are insufficient to protect remote islands, the officials said.

China has been increasing its maritime assertiveness, especially in relation to the Senkakus, which China calls Diaoyu and claims as its territory.

As part of its plan to bolster its defense of the Senkakus and other remote islands, the ministry is also proposing the use of commercial vessels and aircraft to speed up the deployment of Self-Defense Forces units in emergencies, the officials said.

Currently, the Ground Self-Defense Force Western Army Infantry Regiment based in Nagasaki Prefecture functions like the U.S. Marine Corps and is responsible for defending remote islands.

While the ministry plans to expand the existing remote island protection regiment to 680 members during the current fiscal year through next March, the formation of the new unit will further increase available forces, the officials said.

It is also envisioned that the new unit will conduct joint exercises with the U.S. Marines.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said it is necessary to study the possibility of giving Japanese military units the authorization to attack potential enemy bases. He was responding to proposals submitted by the LDP for strengthening the nation’s defense capabilities with an eye toward North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats.

“We need to study (the possibility) because it is an important matter,” Abe said at a meeting with LDP lawmakers. The proposals were submitted before the government compiles its long-term defense program outline by the end of this year.

Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera, however, expressed caution.

“While it will not pose any legal problems if Japan has the capability to attack an enemy base, various discussions are necessary” to gain support from neighboring countries, he told a news conference the same day.

The proposals covered boosting Japan’s ability to defend its remote islands in the wake of recent Chinese maritime encroachments, touching on the need to equip the SDF with U.S. MV-22 Osprey transport aircraft and to improve the capabilities of its amphibious forces.

In January, a Chinese warship locked its weapon-targeting radar on a Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer in the East China Sea. Another Chinese warship did likewise the same month with an MSDF helicopter. Japan has also scrambled fighter jets in response to Chinese aircraft approaching Japanese airspace.

The proposals included the introduction of regular joint exercises involving police and coast guard units to prepare for possible terrorist attacks against nuclear power plants and allowing Japan to exercise the right to collective self-defense.

Kyodo News, June 13, 2013
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/06/13/national/special-sdf-isle-assault-unit-in-works/#.UbrULNjuLRY

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 China asks Japan, U.S. to cancel drill for recapturing island

China has asked Japan and the United States to cancel a drill set for this month in California by U.S. forces and Self-Defense Forces to recapture control of a remote island, in light of the Sino-Japanese row over the Senkaku Islands, sources said Tuesday.

Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera told a biweekly news conference that Japan and the U.S. would conduct the exercise as planned to boost both SDF and joint-operation capabilities.

In April, the Defense Ministry said about 1,000 SDF members will take part in the drill set to be held on an island and a U.S. military base in California this month. It will mark the first time SDF personnel participate in such a drill on the U.S. mainland.

Tokyo and Washington say they have no particular enemy country in mind in conducting the drill, noting they have conducted similar exercises before.

China filed the request through diplomatic channels, the sources said, adding that Beijing is firmly against the drill.

Chinese President Xi Jinping is scheduled to hold a summit with his U.S. counterpart, Barack Obama, on Friday and Saturday, just ahead of the drillÅfs scheduled Monday kickoff.

About 1,000 members from the Ground, Maritime and Air Self-Defense forces will participate in the exercise, mainly crew members of three MSDF ships, including the 13,950-ton Hyuga, a helicopter-carrying destroyer, and the 7,750-ton Atago, an Aegis-equipped destroyer.

Around 250 GSDF ranks, 730 from the MSDF and five from the ASDF are to participate in the drill.

Kyodo News, June 5, 2013
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/06/05/national/china-asks-japan-u-s-to-cancel-drill-for-recapturing-island/#.UbpfGNjuLRY

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