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Beijing: The Japanese government has released a map and aerial photos detailing Chinese oil and gas exploration platforms it said proved Beijing was accelerating plans to unilaterally exploit an oilfield that straddles disputed waters in the East China Sea.
The move adds to the fresh round of heightened tensions between the two Asian powers and in the region, as China, which has also come under international pressure for its rapid island building in the disputed South China Sea, prepares for a large-scale military parade in September to mark the 70th anniversary of Japan's defeat in World War II.
It also comes as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe seeks to win public opinion over the need to pass legislation to give Japan's military a greater role.
The map and photos released by the Japanese foreign ministry show 16 marine platforms on the Chinese side of a de facto maritime median line between the two countries. Japan has long expressed concern that such developments could siphon gas from undersea formations which extend to its own side.
"It is extremely regrettable that China should conduct unilateral development of resources," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters in Tokyo on Wednesday. He said 12 new structures had been confirmed in the area since June 2013.
Japan's defence white paper, approved by the cabinet on Tuesday, was delayed by a week to include new details of China's oil and gas exploration activities in the East China Sea. China featured centrally in the paper as a contributor to escalating tension in the region.
The disclosure also comes days after the passage of security bills which seeks to extend Japan's military to allow it to defend other countries - a move Beijing portrays as Tokyo turning its back on its postwar pacifist constitution.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said China's exploitation of oil and gas in the East China Sea has been conducted in "indisputable waters under China's jurisdiction". He said Japan's actions "deliberately creates antagonism" and were not constructive to the improvement of bilateral ties.
"Japan's hyping-up of the oil and gas issue in the East China Sea will do nothing good to carry out dialogue and cooperation between China and Japan on the East China Sea-related issues," he said.
Japan's contentious security bills were passed by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's two-thirds majority in the lower house despite widespread popular opposition. Tens of thousands of protesters demonstrated outside parliament, while opposition parties staged a walkout in protest before the vote.
China's official Xinhua news agency condemned the Japanese vote, saying it meant "a nightmare scenario has come a step closer for Japanese people and neighbouring nations".
