By Zachary Keck
China reportedly began drawing up plans for a South China Sea Air Defense Identification Zone as early as May 2013.
China has begun drafting plans for an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) in the South China Sea, according to a new report from a Japanese newspaper.
On Friday The Asahi Shimbun carried a report that said that “working-level air force officials” in China “have already worked out a draft plan for the prospective” ADIZ for the South China Sea. It also said that the “Air Force Command College, a cadre development and research institution in Beijing that helped draft the East China Sea ADIZ,” has been working on the South China Sea ADIZ for some time now, and submitted an original draft plan to senior military leaders as early as May 2013.
The Asahi Shimbun said that the information came from several Chinese government sources, including “one senior official in a government-affiliated research institution.” Although The Diplomat could not independently confirm the report, The Asahi Shimbun has a strong record of reporting on China and regularly publishes reports on internal Chinese politics and policy.
Moreover, China has strongly implied that it is considering establishing a South China Sea ADIZ, which would presumably be similar to the ADIZ it established over the East China Sea back in November of last year. Immediately following China’s announcement of the East China Sea ADIZ, a Ministry of Defense spokesperson warned that more ADIZs would follow “at the right moment after necessary preparations are completed.”
Read the full story at The Diplomat