The Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force’s P3C patrol plane and destroyer Yamagiri spotted the Chinese naval ships--two Jiangkai II-class frigates and one Fuchi-class oiler--cruising some 110 kilometers northeast of Miyakojima at around 9:30 a.m. (12:30 a.m. GMT), the ministry’s Joint Staff Office said.

The ships did not intrude into Japan’s territorial waters or the contiguous zone before sailing into the Pacific Ocean, the office said, adding they were believed to be heading to the Gulf of Aden near Somalia in anti-piracy operations. (Jiji Press)