Amid turmoil elsewhere in the world, the steady expansion of China’s military presence in waters surrounding Japan has been overlooked.
Recent exercises underscore the ability of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to project power ever farther from the country’s shores. When combined with the increasing tempo, sophistication and intensity of drills around Taiwan, China’s intent could not be clearer: Beijing is signaling its growing capability and readiness to press its will on regional governments. Japan must do more to prepare.
Regional and global attention has been focused on the steady creep of the Chinese military presence in the South China Sea. Especially fraught is the rising tension with the Philippines, which is engaged in a bitter dispute with China over territory in those waters, but Beijing has also antagonized other countries with claims in those waters, such as Vietnam and Indonesia.
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