China Possibly Drilling for Gas in East China Sea

Flames have been spotted shooting out of a drilling rig in a gas field in the East China Sea, where Japan and China have been discussing joint development.

NHK shot aerial footage last Thursday of the Kashi gas field, or Tianwaitian in Chinese, which lies near the Japan-China median line that separates the 2 countries' exclusive economic zones.

In the footage, men can be seen working on the Chinese-built rig.

Japan and China agreed in June 2008 to begin discussions for joint development of the area.

But in January of the following year, waters around the gas field turned brown, suggesting that China was developing it on its own.

A Japanese veteran oil and gas engineer says he cannot tell whether the Chinese are in a production stage, but the flames and smoke indicate they may be burning natural gas, and that they're continuing development on their own.

Japan's Foreign Ministry has lodged a protest with the Chinese government, saying that China's unilateral development is unacceptable as the 2 countries have yet to agree on their maritime boundary.

China has countered that it was exercising its inherent right to development.

There are multiple natural gas fields near the median line that separates Japan and China's exclusive economic zones in the East China Sea, about 400 kilometers northwest of Okinawa.

The Kashi gas field, or Tianwaitian in Chinese, and the Shirakaba gas field, or Chunxiao in Chinese, lie on the Chinese side of the line. China has been developing them since around 2003.

In 2005, Japan asked China if they could jointly develop 4 of the gas fields in the area.

In 2008, the 2 governments agreed on joint development of 2 areas, including the area that contains the Shirakaba gas field.

They also agreed to discuss joint development of other areas.

But negotiations stalled in 2010 after a Chinese fishing boat rammed into Japanese Coast Guard patrol vessels off Japan's Senkaku Islands.

Yokohama City University Professor Susumu Yabuki says China's aim is not only to secure resources, but also to build a structure near the median line, have the navy protect it, and expand its effective control over regional waters.

Yabuki says the Japanese government must restart negotiations as soon as possible to determine China's true intentions.