China fired warning shots as a Japanese warship strayed into Chinese territorial waters in the East China Sea last year, according to a new report.
Newsweek contacted the Japanese and Chinese foreign ministries for comment via email.
Why It Matters
Heightened friction continues between China and Japan, and U.S. defense treaty ally. These tensions are driven by China’s rapid military buildup, the increasing frequency and scale of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) military drills around Beijing-claimed Taiwan, and Chinese coast guard patrols near the Japan-controlled Senkaku Islands, known in China as the Diaoyu islands.
What To Know
On July 4, 2024, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Akizuki-class destroyer JS Suzutsuki was operating in international waters off the coast of China’s Zhejiang province, north of the Taiwan Strait.
The ship was monitoring the live-fire drills being carried out by PLA’s Eastern Theater Command. Zhejiang’s maritime authority had previously declared a no-sail zone for July 3 and 4.
In a surprising turn of events, the 6,800-ton vessel then sailed toward China’s territorial waters, which extend 12 nautical miles (13.8 miles) from Zhejiang’s coastal baselines.
After repeated demands to change course went unheeded, Chinese forces fired at least two shells in warning—one before the ship crossed into the zone and another once it was in territorial waters, Japan’s Kyodo News reported on Sunday, citing multiple sources familiar with China-Japan ties.
Neither shell struck the Suzutsuki, and no damage was reported. The ship remained in the territorial sea for about 20 minutes.
The cause of the incident was later traced to a crew error—failing to activate the navigational chart display that marks the boundary between international and territorial waters, per Kyodo.
Newsweek was unable to independently confirm Kyodo’s report.
Beijing criticized the “illegal and improper move.” It also called on Tokyo to mount an investigation and take measures to prevent a similar incident.
The captain of the JS Suzutsuki was replaced that month after only two months in the role, then-Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara confirmed in September. He told reporters it was not Defense Ministry policy to share the reason for personnel transfers.
According to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, foreign-flagged vessels—including those of other navies—are permitted to transit territorial waters under the principle of innocent passage.
China, however, has asserted that foreign warships must obtain permission to pass through its territorial waters.
In August 2024, a Chinese spy plane drew a strong protest from Tokyo after briefly entering Japanese airspace in what Beijing said was an accident.
What People Are Saying
Collin Koh, a senior fellow at the Institute of Defense and Strategic Studies, wrote on X: “[People’s Republic of China vessels] fired warning shots at JS Suzutsuki last July, including before the JMSDF ship even entered PRC territorial sea. Escalatory for sure.”
What Happens Next
Japan’s Defense Ministry, in a 2025 white paper, described Beijing as Tokyo’s “greatest strategic challenge,” citing an increase in Chinese naval deployments near Japanese territory and deepening military cooperation with Russia.
The paper also warned that the gap in capabilities between Chinese and Taiwanese forces continues to widen. Beijing claims the self-ruled democracy as its own territory and has vowed to unify with it, by force if necessary.
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