China is no longer making a secret of its ambition to gain dominance over the western Pacific as it sends its warships into Japanese territorial waters and contiguous zones. Behind these actions lies Beijing¡¯s cunning calculation of the international community¡¯s reactions.
When a Chinese naval vessel recently invaded Japanese territorial waters near Kuchinoerabu Island in Kagoshima Prefecture, Beijing insisted that the area constituted an ¡°international strait¡± through which any ship can pass ¡ª thus resorting to a ¡°legal warefare¡± for the first time.
With Japan unable to make a rebuttal, China¡¯s propaganda could very well impact global public opinion.
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