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A map, details of the zone's coordinates, and rules governing the area were posted on the ministry of defence's website today, along with a question and answer statement from Yang Yajun, a ministry spokesman. Japan's Foreign Ministry lodged a complaint with China over the zone, Kyodo News said.
The move risks heightening tensions between Asia's two biggest economies which are in dispute over the ownership of islets known as Diaoyu in Chinese and Senkaku in Japanese. The islands lie inside the zone and both nations claim sovereignty over the surrounding waters, which are rich in oil, natural gas and fish.
"This is a necessary measure taken by China in exercising its self-defence right," Yang said, according to the English-language statement. "It is not directed against any specific country or target. It does not affect the freedom of over-flight in the related airspace."
Japan strongly objects to China setting up the zone and including the islands in the area, Kyodo News reported, citing the Japanese Foreign Ministry. The nation will strengthen its surveillance in the East China Sea, it said.
'Unpredictable Situation'
The No.2 at the Japanese Embassy in Beijing and the Japanese defence attache made protests to China's Foreign Ministry and Defence Ministry, an embassy official, who asked not to be identified in line with policy, said in a telephone interview. They told Chinese officials that the action was dangerous, could escalate the situation surrounding the islands and invite an unpredictable situation, he said.
The regulations governing the zone were effective as of 10 am Beijing time on Saturday, according to the Defence Ministry , which didn't specify what measures might be taken against aircraft that don't cooperate with identification requirements or follow its instructions.
The rules include reporting flight plans to China's Foreign Ministry or civil aviation authorities,and providing radio and logo identification of aircraft, the Defence Ministry said.
The Chinese air force conducted its first patrol inside the zone today, comprising two reconnaissance plans with fighter jets and early-warning aircraft in support, the ministry said in a separate statement.
Military reach
The announcement of the zone follows a decision by China's Communist Party leaders last week to form a state committee to better coordinate security issues as the country expands its military reach and faces growing dissent at home.
Many countries, including Japan and the US, enforce ADIZs, airspace where the identification, location and control of aircraft are required in the interest of national security. More than 20 countries, including some of China's neighbours, have stipulated such zones since the 1950s, Yang said, adding that the Chinese government's action is in line with international laws and customs.
The easternmost point of the East China Sea zone "is so close to China that combat aircraft can soon reach China's territorial airspace from the point," Yang said. "Therefore it is necessary for China to identify any aircraft from this point to assess its intentions and examine its identity so as to allow enough early-warning time for responsive measures in maintaining air security."
Heightened tensions
"Normal" flights by international airlines in the zone "will not be affected in any way," Yang said.
The ministry published a map that places the disputed islands within the identification zone, which includes airspace within six latitude/longitude points: 3311'N and 12147'E, 3311'N and 12500'E, 3100'N and 12820'E, 2538'N and 12500'E, 2445'N and 12300'E, 2644'N and 12058'E.
Tensions between China and Japan over the disputed islands were heightened this month after a retired Chinese military commander warned that any attack by Japan on China's drones would represent the "first shot" of a war. His comments followed a report in the Sankei newspaper that Japan may consider new rules allowing it to shoot down unmanned aircraft that enter its airspace.
