Tokyo: China has removed its last remaining buoy from Japan's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), the Japan Coast Guard confirmed on Thursday. This move may signal Beijing's intent to ease current tensions with Tokyo.
Japan had detected a new Chinese buoy in December 2024, positioned south of Yonaguni Island near Taiwan, within Japanese economic waters. Tokyo promptly demanded the immediate removal of the buoy. A Japan Coast Guard spokesman stated late Wednesday that the buoy is no longer in position, confirming all Chinese buoys within Japan's EEZ have now been removed.
Japanese media have speculated that this action might reflect Beijing's attempt to improve strained bilateral relations, especially amid heightened geopolitical and economic pressures from the United States. However, Japan's top government spokesman, Yoshimasa Hayashi, declined to speculate on China’s motivations during a press briefing.
Previously, China had installed another buoy in July 2023 near the disputed Senkaku Islands—territories administered by Japan but also claimed by China, which refers to them as the Diaoyu Islands. That buoy was removed from Japan's EEZ in February 2024.
Relations between the two countries remain tense, exacerbated by Beijing’s prohibition on Japanese seafood imports following Tokyo’s 2023 release of treated wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear plant, increased Chinese military activities near Japanese territory, and recent security incidents, including the fatal stabbing of a Japanese schoolboy in China and detentions of Japanese nationals by Chinese authorities.
Moreover, Tokyo recently accused Beijing of conducting unnotified maritime scientific research within its EEZ near Okinotori atoll in the Pacific Ocean, further straining diplomatic ties.
