Chinese navy arrives in Sea of Japan just as Tokyo deploys long-range missiles

Five ships transited Tsushima Strait and were tracked heading northeast after China warned of strong response to ‘neo-militarism’.2-MIN READ2-MIN7 ListenPublished: 6:01pm, 1 Apr 2026Updated: 6:02pm, 1 Apr 2026As Tokyo was completing the deployment on Tuesday of its two Type 25 missiles targeting China, a Chinese naval fleet entered the Japan" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="19667" data-entity-type="location">Sea of Japan, while bilateral tensions continued to escalate.China has strongly protested the Japan-ground-self-defence-force" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="85742" data-entity-type="organization">Japan Ground Self-Defence Force’s addition of the newly designated Type 25 long-range surface-to-ship guided (SSM) missile and hypervelocity gliding projectiles (HGP).The deployments were an example of “neo-militarism in Japan, which has become more than just a perilous tendency but a very real threat that may wreak havoc on regional peace and security”, the Chinese defence ministry warned last month.At Wednesday’s press briefing, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning again condemned the move as “neo-militarism” and said China was “seriously concerned” about the development. Trump’s talks with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi off to positive startTrump’s talks with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi off to positive startShe criticised Japan for deploying offensive weapons under the guise of a “defensive counterstrike”, stating that it exceeded the scope of self-defence and Japan’s long-standing policy of an exclusively defensive stance.