Japanese sub conducts first drills in South China Sea

TOKYO: A Japanese submarine joined a naval drill in the South China Sea for the first time, the Ministry of Defence said this week, in an escalation of Japanese activity in the disputed waterway claimed by China and others.

The Maritime Self Defence Force submarine Kuroshio conducted a naval exercise last Thursday with other Japanese warships in the South China Sea, including the helicopter carrier Kaga, which is on a twomonth tour of Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean, a Ministry of Defence spokesman said.

The exercise, which involved the submarine trying to evade detection, was conducted away from island bases constructed by China to push its claims in the strategic sea. However, it could still anger Beijing because submarines represent a greater potential menace to shipping than surface vessels.

It came after a British Royal Navy amphibious assault ship, HMS Albion, sailed close to islands claimed by China in the South China Sea late last month to exercise ‘‘freedom of navigation’’ rights.

Britain’s first such operation prompted a strong Chinese protest, which sent aircraft and a naval vessel to meet the ship.

Foreign aircraft and vessels in the region are routinely challenged by Chinese naval ships and monitoring stations on the fortified islands, sources have said previously. Beijing insists its intentions in the South China Sea are peaceful.