Japan raises safety concern over Chinese destroyer’s live-fire drills– abcnews.com

TOKYO — Japan expressed concern after a Chinese navy destroyer conducted live-fire drills off a remote Japanese island in the Pacific Ocean on Sunday during its joint exercise with Russia, officials said Tuesday.

The Chinese Luyang III-class guided-missile destroyer conducted a live-fire exercise off Japan’s southernmost island of Okinotori, hours after the Japanese navy spotted it operating alongside two other Chinese warships and a Russian frigate, the Japanese Joint Staff said.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara told reporters Tuesday that his government conveyed concerns that the live-fire drills posed a potential safety threat to nearby vessels. He noted that ships near the area received a notice from the Chinese warships just before the drills started.

“We will continue to watch China-Russia operations around Japan with concern, while doing utmost for the warning and surveillance of the Japanese airspace and territorial waters,” Kihara said.

Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, in a speech Monday in Britain, said the action underscored “the deepening military cooperation between China and Russia,” as he also noted China’s ballistic missile launch from a submarine earlier this month, and at least 10 joint flights conducted by Chinese and Russian bombers around Japan.