China has stepped up construction of drilling rigs and other platforms off its east coast to tap into maritime resources such as natural gas and fish, raising the ire of Japan and South Korea and fanning fresh concerns about Beijing’s regional ambitions.
In the latest development, Japan said on Tuesday it lodged a protest with China after observing a new structure in a natural gas field in the East China Sea. Tokyo reported finding another similar Chinese structure in the same area in May.
South Korea, meanwhile, has protested in recent months about three structures that China built for aquaculture in the Yellow Sea, which separates the Korean peninsula from mainland China.
Japan protests new Chinese construction in East China Sea
