The Navy of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army has been carrying out a large-scale military exercise in the sea area of the Western Pacific since December 4.

Japan has dispatched its naval vessels to track, scout and molest the Chinese navy during the exercise. The Japanese media have been harping on about the exercise and about the "China threat". Why does Japan do these things?

First, Japan still has a Cold War mindset. Japan wants to pen China’s navy inside the “First Island Chain”. The “Island Chain” was conceived by the US to hem in the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Since the end of the Cold War, the US has taken a rational attitude to China’s military exercises in the Pacific and accepts that these exercises are natural conduct. But Japan still tries to impose its limits on China.

Second, Japan is trying to build up its aggressive capacity. It has lifted its ban on collective self-defense and is trying to beef up its military power. Japan makes an issue of China’s military exercises to divert the attention of other countries from its own military build-up.

Third, Japan wants to consolidate its alliance with the US. The US has kept a watchful eye on the Asia-Pacific region since the Cold War. With the rise of China, Japan has been talking up the “China Threat” in the hope of winning US help to constrain China's defence capacity.

This article was edited and translated from 《日本炒作中国军演的三重居心》, source: People's Daily Overseas Edition, Author: Zhang Junshe