US ‘deeply concerned’ over China air defense zone: Kerry

The United States is “deeply concerned” about China’s plans to establish an “air defense identification zone” over the East China Sea that includes disputed islands, Secretary of State John Kerry said Saturday.

In a move that raised the temperature of a bitter territorial row between China and Japan, Beijing’s defense ministry said it was setting up the zone to “guard against potential air threats.”

It later scrambled air force jets, including fighter planes, to carry out a patrol mission Saturday in the newly established zone.

Tokyo swiftly branded the move as “very dangerous.”

“This unilateral action constitutes an attempt to change the status quo in the East China Sea,” Kerry said in a statement during a visit in Geneva.

“Escalatory action will only increase tensions in the region and create risks of an incident.”

The outline of the zone, which is shown on the Chinese defense ministry website and a state media Twitter account (pic.twitter.com/4a2vC6PH8O), covers a wide area of the East China Sea between South Korea and Taiwan that includes airspace above the Tokyo-controlled islands known as the Senkaku to Japan and Diaoyu to China.

“Freedom of overflight and other internationally lawful uses of sea and airspace are essential to prosperity, stability and security in the Pacific,” Kerry said.

He stressed that the United States does not support efforts to apply an air identification zone to foreign aircraft that do not intend to enter the country’s national airspace.

“We urge China not to implement its threat to take action against aircraft that do not identify themselves or obey orders from Beijing,” Kerry added.

“We have urged China to exercise caution and restraint, and we are consulting with Japan and other affected parties, throughout the region.”

The top US diplomat also called for a “more collaborative and less confrontational future in the Pacific.”