Japan scrambles jets as China demands chemical weapons cleanup

Japan's Joint Staff announced on Monday that it scrambled fighter jets for four consecutive days after detecting Chinese Y-9 surveillance aircraft operating off the Danjo Islands and Okinawa in the East China Sea, though Tokyo confirmed no violation of its airspace occurred. The deployments occurred from Thursday through Sunday in response to aircraft observed west of Japan's southwestern main island of Kyushu and near Okinawa's main island, according to Kyodo News. There was no immediate response from Beijing regarding Tokyo's claims about the aerial operations.

Chemical weapons dispute

The incidents come amid heightened diplomatic friction between the two Asian powers, with Beijing separately pressing Tokyo on Monday to accelerate the destruction of World War II-era chemical weapons abandoned in China. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning urged Japan to “earnestly fulfill its obligations and responsibilities at an early date and completely and thoroughly destroy all chemical weapons it abandoned in China,” referencing a recent visit by Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons officials and diplomats from 12 countries to Jilin province.

Mao was responding to questions regarding the delegation's inspection of sites in Hunchun, Dunhua and Harbaling in Northeast China's Jilin province. “Through the visit, all parties gained a deeper understanding of the serious harm that Japan's abandoned chemical weapons have caused to the lives and property of the Chinese people and to the ecological environment,” she added.