In recent days, Japanese public opinion can be described as boiling over, and on the 18th of this month, the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force announced the "high-definition big picture" of the Sino-Russian combined fleet crossing the Tsugaru Strait.
This is not only because of the strong and powerful cooperation of the Chinese and Russian navies, but also because the Tsugaru Strait, as the "neck" of Japan's territory, was so easily crossed by the Sino-Russian combined fleet, which caused concern and even panic in the Japanese political circles and the people, not only japanese netizens claimed that this was "invaded", but also Japanese netizens openly shouted that Japan must develop nuclear weapons to enhance its national defense capabilities and deal with China and Russia.
Interestingly, compared with the agitated public opinion, the Japanese government has shown extreme restraint, and Japanese Cabinet Secretary General Hitohiko Isozaki made it clear at a news conference on the 19th of this month that the Japanese side is "highly concerned" about the movements of the Chinese and Russian fleets, and will carry out vigilance and surveillance of the sea and airspace around Japan and adopt a comprehensive response posture.
The reason why the Sino-Russian combined fleet crossing the Tsugaru Strait will arouse great concern from public opinion is, in the final analysis, it has a lot to do with the location and current situation of the Tsugaru Strait.
Geographically, the Tsugaru Strait is located between Honshu and Hokkaido, with access to the Sea of Japan to the west and the Pacific Ocean to the east, with a total length of more than 100 kilometers, but only 24-40 kilometers wide.
If the width of the national territorial sea is stipulated in accordance with international law and Japan's domestic law on the width of 12 nautical miles, the Tsugaru Strait is undoubtedly Japan's territorial sea, and combined with the unique landform of the Tsugaru Strait, it can even be further called the inland sea.
Japan made a commitment to the "Three Principles of Non-Nuclear Weapons" in the 1960s, but at the same time the United States and Japan signed a security treaty, and Japan must ensure that the US military with nuclear weapons can have convenient access on Japanese territory.
Although the Japanese government has consistently denied this compact, the body has been very honest in proposing an "exception list" that lists five waterways, including the Tsugaru Strait, as "specific sea areas" with a territorial water width of only 3 nautical miles.
In this way, the middle part of the vacated strait becomes an international water that allows ships of other countries to pass harmlessly.
The end result is that not only U.S. warships can sail from here, but foreign warships can follow suit, in fact, China's navy crossed the Tsugaru Strait in 2000, 2008, 2016 and 2017, when the Japanese Ministry of Defense publicly accused China of intruding into "Japanese territorial waters."
At that time, our Ministry of National Defense immediately solemnly refuted this, saying that the relevant activities of Chinese warships were in line with international law, and in turn criticizing the Japanese side's accusations of "ulterior motives."
It can be seen that the existence of "specific sea areas" is basically the result of Japan's painting of the earth as a prison, and It is Japan itself that has abandoned the claim of the width of the territorial sea. The Sino-Russian combined fleet is merely exercising free navigation in accordance with international law, or even Japanese law, and it is impossible for the Japanese side to accept the groundless accusations of the Japanese side.
Not only that, but it is Japan, not China and Russia, that should really be criticized, and in recent years Japan has become increasingly dissatisfied with defensive force, whether it is a peaceful revision of the constitution or the normalization of the army, which is sending a very sensitive and dangerous signal to the outside world.
As a neighbor of China, Japan should move in the same direction as China. If china continues to confront China on sensitive issues, it will not only be detrimental to regional peace and stability, but will also be harmful to Sino-Japanese bilateral relations.
However, we must also be soberly aware that being able to cross the Tsugaru Strait does not mean that it will be substantially helpful to break through the first island chain, and because of its own characteristics, the Tsugaru Strait cannot carry out large-scale maneuvers once it enters, and it is vulnerable to being attacked by shore-based anti-ship missiles on both sides of the strait without seizing air supremacy.
Whether it can be judged whether it constitutes a substantial breakthrough for the first island chain depends on whether the security and control of sea lanes can be maintained in a state of war.
From this point of view, the Tsugaru Strait is still in The hands of Japan. But this does not mean that the open action of the Sino-Russian combined fleet did not bring enough shock to Japan, and in fact this shock may have exceeded our expectations.
Japan has unresolved disputes over the territorial issue and its neighbors, both China and Russia are among them, and on the issue of the ownership of the South Kuril Islands, China's position is very clear, that is, "the fruits of victory in World War II must be respected and respected."
On the issue of the Diaoyu Islands, Russia conducted a joint air strategic cruise with China for the first time in 2019, and the two sides dispatched a total of 4 bombers to form a mixed formation to conduct joint cruises in accordance with the established routes in the Airspace of Japan and the East China Sea, during which they were close to the Diaoyu Islands, when the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force had to respond urgently.
It can be seen that China and Russia support each other's positions in the territorial disputes involving Japan, and this pressure has exceeded 1+ 1=2 for Japan, after all, two of the three major nuclear powers in the world at that time had territorial disputes with themselves, and there was only one United States behind Japan.
Therefore, I would like to advise Japan to recognize history, respect reality, and not to get involved in issues beyond its own capabilities, let alone try to fake tiger power.