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Japan sets up showdown with China over East China Sea drilling
Is China starting to reap what it has sown? EFLJapan on Thursday approved a request by Teikoku Oil Co. to drill for natural gas in the East China Sea along a disputed sea border with China, prompting Beijing to warn about the possibility of worsening ties. Teikoku Oil's Masaaki Akasaka told The Associated Press that officials would spend about a month discussing with the ministry how to ensure the safety of the company's workers in any possible standoff with Chinese vessels. He declined to elaborate. Tokyo and Beijing have been feuding over claims to the undersea gas deposits, amid a broader diplomatic row that has soured bilateral relations in recent months. Though decades-old surveys have suggested that the East China Sea has potentially rich gas reserves, it's unclear how much actually lies beneath the sea floor. The gas is vital to Asia's two largest economies as they try to secure resources to fuel future growth. Nakagawa, the trade minister, denied that Tokyo was trying to "provoke China," adding: "This is just a domestic procedure." He said it was Tokyo's "unavoidable responsibility to protect the activities of Japan's private sector." Asked whether that meant Tokyo would consider dispatching Japan's navy to protect Teikoku Oil workers, Nakagawa simply said: "We have various options." Posted by: trailing wife 2005-07-15 |
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