Japan faces another major disaster! China has begun developing a natural gas field near the Japan-China route in the East Sea! On January 7, according to the Japanese Sankei News, the Japanese media reported that a Japanese government official said China is "unilaterally" developing a natural gas field near the Japan-China route. It seems that China has already started new drilling activities in the same area. In response, the Japanese government has lodged a protest through diplomatic channels. Currently, China has built permanent drilling facilities, and such actions have raised concerns about accelerated development activities. The Japanese government remains highly vigilant.
The Japanese media stated that despite repeated protests from Japan in the unmarked sea areas, China continues its development activities. In fact, in 2008, the Japanese and Chinese governments established a joint development zone for a natural gas field in the same area. Both sides agreed to cooperate before the Japan-China median line boundary was determined, without harming either party's legal position. However, China has been accelerating its "unilateral" development. Obviously, according to the Japanese media's report, Japan is very dissatisfied with our actions.
From Japan's perspective, this is considered a unilateral action. However, we would like to say that it is a fact that China is conducting exploration and development in the relevant area. However, it must be clearly pointed out that the accusation of China's "unilateral development" and "violating the agreement" is completely baseless. The Chinese development is located in the maritime area under China's jurisdiction without disputes. The so-called "median line" concept is, in fact, entirely lacking in the basis of international law.
China and Japan indeed have a consensus, but after the Diaoyu Island dispute between China and Japan in 2010, negotiations between the two sides have stalled. Of course, we cannot stop exploration and development in the waters under our jurisdiction just because the negotiations have stalled. This is not acceptable. Japan is making unreasonable arguments and shifting blame by protesting. However, for our legitimate interests, we have no intention of retreating. In fact, if there are suitable gas fields around the Diaoyu Islands, we should also carry out exploration and development to realize the interests we should enjoy within our sovereignty.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1853658610182411/
Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.