Japan sees China radar-use as threat of force under UN rule

Tokyo, Feb 7 (Kyodo) Japan today said that China's recent use of weapons-guiding radar on a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force vessel in the East China Sea could be considered a threat of military force by the United Nations. "I believe (the Chinese act) may amount to a threat of military force under the UN Charter," Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera told a parliamentary committee, suggesting it is inconsistent with the spirit of the international body. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reiterated that the incident was regrettable. He also told the parliament that it is important we do not close the window for dialogue. Onodera also urged China to cooperate in looking into last month's incident that Tokyo claims could have triggered an accidental military clash. "To prevent a recurrence, we need to establish a communication channel for Japan and China to discuss maritime security mechanism," he said. An article of the UN Charter says all member countries "shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the purpose of the United Nations. "The Defense Ministry had announced on Tuesday that a Chinese warship locked weapons-targeting radar on a MSDF destroyer on Jan 30 in waters near the Senkaku Islands, administered by Japan but claimed by China. The ministry also said a similar case occurred on Jan 19 involving a MSDF helicopter. A senior ministry official separately said today that when the radar was used, missiles or other artillery were not directed by China against the Japanese ship. "No artillery was directed," Masanori Nishi, director general of the ministry's Defense Policy Bureau, told a meeting of a panel at the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. The Chinese government had suggested yesterday that the Jan 30 incident was an independent action by the military. "We learned about this incident from press reports," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said. (Kyodo) IRH 02071505 NNNN