The rattling East China Sea issue, primarily involving China and Japan, is once again in the headlines due to the U.S. flying two of its B-52 bombers over an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ), unveiled by Beijing last weekend. Neighboring Japan reacted angrily to the decision and its strategic guardian and long-term partner, America, went a step further by directly challenging the Chinese unilateral act to change the “status quo” over the control and sovereignty of the disputed waters.

The vultures are circling [By Jiao Haiyang/China.org.cn]

The Pentagon officials said that the two jets were “unarmed” and took off from their base in Guam, flying through the ADIZ. The aircraft remained in the designated zone for less than an hour and returned safely without facing any opposition. A U.S. official called the flight a “routine mission that was planned long ago.”

The timing is crucial as the flights were launched just two days after the declaration of the air defense zone, obviously demonstrating that it was a premeditated step to evaluate the Chinese reaction. China had declared earlier that all aircraft entering the zone should identify themselves or be ready for military checks.

Luckily, the situation remained peaceful.

The East China Sea, covering an area of roughly 1,249,000 square kilometers, is part of the Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by South Korea, Japan and China.

The real conflict is between China and Japan, due to controversy in the claims over the islands known as the Diaoyu islands in China and the Senkaku in Japan. The uninhabited but oil-rich islands are a source of constant tension, which experts feared may spark unintentional shootouts between the two regional powers. Tempers were dangerously raised in a similar incident in 2010 when a Chinese fishing boat collided with two Japanese coastguard patrol boats in September. Following the incident, the Japanese coastguards boarded the trawler and arrested its crew, setting off anti-Japan protests in major Chinese cities.