By HAYATO JINNO/ Staff Writer
September 24, 2024 at 14:39 JST
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida responds to reporters in New York on Sept. 23. (Hayato Jinno)
NEW YORK--Japan strongly protested the intrusion of its airspace by a Russian military plane and vowed no letup in patrols of its skies.
The Sept. 23 incident off the northernmost main island of Hokkaido prompted Air Self-Defense Force fighter jets to fire warning flares for the first time.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who is visiting New York to attend the U.N. General Assembly, called the incident “extremely regrettable.”
Japan said a Russian patrol aircraft flew over Rebun Island on the afternoon of Sept. 23, and in doing so entered Japanese airspace three times.
On being informed of the incident, Kishida told reporters he issued three commands, one of which was to respond resolutely to the situation in accordance with international and domestic laws, and to communicate closely with “relevant countries.”
“We are determined to protect our land, sea and skies,” he said. “We will continue to engage in thorough warning and surveillance activities.”
DOMESTIC ISSUES
Turning to other issue, Kishida said his government will sequentially dispatch teams to disaster-stricken areas of the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture from Sept. 24 following record-breaking rainfalls that triggered landslides and flooding, leaving at least seven people dead.
He said the city of Wajima would be the focus of the operations.
Noting that areas in Noto are still dealing with the aftermath of a magnitude-7.6 earthquake that struck on Jan. 1, Kishida said, “We aim to relieve the anxieties of people in the damaged areas through funding from the national treasury for recovery work involving temporary housing units and other measures.”
With only days remaining until he leaves office when his ruling Liberal Democratic Party holds its presidential election on Sept. 27, Kishida was asked who he will vote for.
“I will consider who will take over and develop our policies that my Cabinet has been carrying out, and then, I will vote,” he replied.
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