China Conducts Live-Fire Drill in Japan-Claimed EEZ near Okinotorishima

Exam-focused facts from the 23 July 2026 current affairs briefing.

Key facts

China conducted a live-fire naval exercise inside Japan's claimed Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) near Okinotorishima.
Japan lodged a diplomatic protest, stating the drill could endanger navigation, and noted it was the first time it publicly disclosed a foreign navy's live-fire drill inside its claimed EEZ.
China rejected the protest, arguing that Okinotorishima is a submerged reef and cannot generate an EEZ under international law.
The drill involved two Chinese destroyers, a Chinese supply ship, and a Russian frigate; a Chinese warship fired a machine gun.
Japanese officials confirmed that the Chinese warship had notified nearby vessels before the drill, and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) does not prohibit military exercises within another country's EEZ.