Japan protested over China’s gas development in disputed sea area

Beijing. June 29. Silkroadnews - The government of Japan has protested to China for a new floating drilling rig operating in the disputed area of the East China Sea, the Kazakh Telegraph Agency (KazTAG) reports with reference to TASS.
As Minister for Foreign Affairs Taro Kono said at the press conference in Tokyo on Friday, natural gas development in this region contradicts Japan’s position, as stipulated by the international law.
The protest was brought to the attention of Beijing via diplomatic channels.
Earlier, the Japanese government announced it has found a new type drilling rig in the immediate vicinity of the conventional border, which, in Tokyo’s view, divides the exclusive economic zones of the two countries in the East China Sea. Beijing does not recognize this line and believes it should go much more east, claiming a significant part of the Japanese zone.
Currently, according to Japanese data, there are 16 Chinese drilling rigs operating in extraction of natural gas in the disputed area.