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As tensions mount over China’s declaration of a new air defense zone, the United States Navy has deployed next-generation surveillance aircraft to Japan. Outfitted with advanced radar, anti-ship missiles, and mines, the P-8A are intended to boost American ability to monitor submarines and other ocean-going vessels in the region. Tensions in the region currently revolve around tiny islands in the East China Sea known as the Senkakus in Japan and the Daioyu in China. The U.S. does not take a stand on the sovereignty of the islands, but it does recognize Japan’s administrative control over the territory and has declared the mutual defense treaty between the two counties applies towards the islands as well.

Although the U.S. continues to fly military aircraft over the ADIZ without notifying China, it has advised commercial airlines to comply with China’s request for safety reasons. This move has sparked some anger in Japan, where Biden spoke of the need for the two countries to cooperate in order to reduce regional conflict.

China acknowledged Wednesday it let two American B-52 bombers fly unhindered through its newly declared air defense zone in the East China Sea despite its earlier threat to take defensive measures against unidentified foreign aircraft. China's lack of any action suggested that it was merely playing out a diplomatic game to establish ownership over the area rather than provoke an international incident. The flights followed days of angry rhetoric and accusations over Beijing's move, designed to assert Chinese claims to a group of uninhabited islands controlled by Japan. It wasn't clear whether Beijing had anticipated the forceful response from Washington and others, or how well it is prepared to back up its demands.

The US has flown two B-52 bombers over disputed islands in the East China Sea in defiance of new Chinese air defence rules, officials say. China set up its "air defence identification zone" on Saturday insisting that aircraft obey its rules or face "emergency defensive measures".A Pentagon spokesman said the planes had followed "normal procedures".The islands, known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, are a source of rising tension between the two nations.

The United States has sharply criticised China's move to impose new rules on airspace over islands at the heart of a territorial dispute with Japan. China's government-run Xinhua news agency published coordinates for a newly established "East China Sea Air Defence Identification Zone," which covers most of that sea and includes the skies over the disputed islands. China warned that it would take "defensive emergency measures" against aircraft that failed to identify themselves properly in the airspace. On Saturday, the White House, Pentagon and State Department all voiced concerns about the move.

A congressional advisory panel sounded a warning Wednesday about China's military buildup, predicting Beijing could possess the largest fleet of modern submarine and combatant ships in the western Pacific by 2020. The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission said China's military modernization is altering the balance of power in the Asia-Pacific region and challenging decades of U.S. pre-eminence.

The report's assessment of China's naval capabilities draws on information from think tanks and U.S. naval intelligence. It said China is known to be building seven classes of vessels, including nuclear and diesel submarines, destroyers and other warships. It expects the naval modernization to continue for the "forseeable future."

 China criticized U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Friday for giving tacit backing to the Philippines' stance in a tense maritime dispute, stressing again that it rejects Manila's attempt to seek arbitration. The Philippines, a U.S. ally, has angered China by launching an arbitration case with the United Nations to challenge the legal validity of Beijing's sweeping claims over the resource-rich South China Sea.

Kerry told leaders at the East Asia Summit in Brunei, including Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, that all claimants "can engage in arbitration and other means of peaceful negotiation".When asked about Kerry's comments, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said that "non-parties to the dispute should respect the efforts by relevant parties involved to peacefully solve the dispute through direct and friendly negotiation ... instead of doing things that could harm regional peace and stability".China claims almost the entire oil- and gas-rich South China Sea, overlapping with claims from Taiwan, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Vietnam. The last four are members of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The United States has cancelled a military exercise with Japan because of the U.S. fiscal standoff, Japan's Defense Ministry said on Tuesday, underscoring the extent of the impact of the U.S. congressional deadlock. Military exercises between Japanese and U.S. forces are the integral part of the alliance, but they have sometimes been a cause of irritation for China, with which Japan is locked in a territorial dispute. The U.S. army and Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force planned to conduct an exercise in northeastern Japan, from October 15 to October 28, mobilizing 400 service men and women from the United States and 600 from Japan. But the U.S. side asked for the cancellation citing the failed attempt by Congress to reach a deal to fund the federal government in the new fiscal year that began on October 1, the Japanese Defense Ministry said.

China said on Monday the United States, Australia and Japan should not use their alliance as an excuse to intervene in territorial disputes in the East China Sea and South China Sea, and urged them to refrain from inflaming regional tensions. Relations between China and Japan, the world's second- and third-largest economies, have been troubled in recent years by a row over tiny, uninhabited islands in the East China Sea known as the Senkaku in Japan and the Diaoyu in China. In the South China Sea, Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, Brunei and China are involved in long-standing sovereignty disputes over the potentially oil- and gas-rich island chain.

On Friday, Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry raised the maritime disputes during a trilateral strategic dialogue in Bali, Indonesia. The U.S.-Japan-Australia meeting took place on the sidelines of an annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting on the Indonesian island of Bali. A joint statement from the U.S.-Japan-Australia meeting opposed "coercive or unilateral actions" that could change the status quo in the East China Sea and called on claimants to maritime disputes in the South China Sea to refrain from destabilizing actions.

China and Malaysia agreed on Friday to elevate bilateral ties to a "comprehensivestrategic partnership", aiming to boost military cooperation and nearly triple two-way trade to $160 billion by 2017. Chinese President Xi Jinping and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak spoke soon after U.S. President Barack Obama cancelled a week-long tour of four Asian nations, including Malaysia, due to the U.S. government shutdown. China is already Malaysia's largest trading partner, with two-way trade last year totalling 181 billion ringgit. Trade between the two countries, which rose at an average annual of 15.7 percent between 2002 and 2012, is expected to hit $70 billion by the end of this year.

"We haveagreed to strengthen our partnership with naval defence, joint military exercises to combat terrorism and promote security," Xi told a news conference in the Malaysian administrative capital Putrajaya. "This will create a sound environment for peace and the prosperity of both countries," he said. Faced with China's growing influence across the region, Obama announced in 2011 a pivot towards Asia as the United States brought wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to an end. In addition to soaring trade, Malaysia has seen an increased flow of Chinese investments in recent years in sectors such as logistics and property.

President Barack Obama has called off a trip to Asia just as China's president is being feted in regional capitals ahead of summits where the U.S. no-show will give China a chance to shine and boost its influence. The cancellation of Obama's trip because of the partial government shutdown will also undermine the Obama administration's strategic "pivot" to Asia in which the U.S. has sought to focus on building economic ties with Asia and boosting its security presence in the region. But with Washington's foreign policy still dominated by the turbulent Middle East, questions have been raised about Obama's commitment to Asia. Meanwhile, new Chinese leader Xi Jinping has been visiting Indonesia and Malaysia to improve Beijing's image at a time when its aggressive stance on territorial issues has strained ties with some countries.

The White House said Thursday that Obama was canceling his trip to Asia because of the partial government shutdown, In Asia, Xi was already well-placed to fill the void. In Indonesia earlier this week, lawmakers applauded after he became the first foreign leader to address Parliament,  Then Xi went to Malaysia, where he and his photogenic first lady met with Prime Minister Najib Razak. While other nations will be sending prime ministers or presidents to the economic forums, Washington has now tapped Secretary of State John Kerry to fill in for Obama. Kerry will also be visiting Malaysia and the Philippines. China claims most of the sea on historical grounds, but Vietnam, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan all disagree. A number of maritime incidents between China and its neighbors have raised concerns about potential violence.

The U.S. military will deploy long-range Global Hawk surveillance drones from Japan next year, U.S. and Japanese officials announced Thursday, marking the first time the Pentagon has been able to secure basing rights for the advanced unmanned aircraft in that region. The U.S. Air Force will begin flying “two or three” Global Hawks from an undetermined base in Japan next spring. The primary mission for the Global Hawks will be to fly near North Korea, where U.S. officials hope they will greatly enhance the current spying capabilities. The Air Force already has Global Hawks stationed at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam, the U.S. territory in the Pacific, but North Korea is at the edge of their range and their flights often are curtailed because of bad weather. The Air Force also has Global Hawks stationed in the Persian Gulf.

The presence of Global Hawks in East Asia is sure to irritate China, which has become increasingly vocal in pushing back against the U.S. military presence in the region. China is also engaged in a bitter territorial dispute with Japan over the Senkaku Islands, Japan-China relations plummeted after that decision, and tense confrontations resulted between the two nation’s ships deployed in the area. Next year will mark the first time that the Pentagon will base unmanned aircraft in Japan. In addition to the Global Hawks, U.S. and Japanese officials announced that the Pentagon would deploy new U.S. Navy P-8 maritime surveillance patrol aircraft to Japan, starting in December. It would be the first time that the P-8s will be stationed outside the United States.

The United States and Japan agreed Thursday to broaden their military alliance, including by adding a new missile defense radar system in Japan and cooperating to combat cyberthreats. The agreement, signed during a joint visit here by Secretary of State John Kerry and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel in a meeting with their Japanese counterparts, signals the United States’ increased military, economic and diplomatic focus on Asia, and it is likely to alarm China, which has had increasingly testy relations with Tokyo. The deal comes at a time when the Japanese government is seeking to greatly enhance its own military capabilities and to revise its pacifist Constitution, drafted after World War II, paving the way for it to become a more equal partner with the United States in times of conflict.

Most significantly, the United States will deploy a new X-band radar system in Kyogamisaki over the next year to better protect both nations against military threats from North Korea. For the first time, the two countries will work on specific cyberdefense projects to increase cybersecurity in both countries. Further, the United States Marine Corps will replace aging helicopters here with two squadrons of MV-22 aircraft, and will deploy surveillance drones to be based in Japan for the first time.

“Our relationship has never been stronger or better than it is today,” Mr. Kerry said. “We are continuing to adapt, however, to confront the different challenges of the 21st century.” These efforts have become complicated by Japan’s increasingly tense relations with nearby South Korea and China. In the latter case, the two nations have been in a frosty standoff over ownership of a set of islands known in Japan as the Senkaku and in China as the Diaoyu, a conflict with no resolution in sight. 

China's military, the largest in the world, is taking concrete steps to foster closer links with US to address concerns arising out of its massive modernisation, a media report said. The increased military powerof China, as well as the rise of China, has been met with unease among the West powers and in particular the world's largest military spender, the United States, a commentary in the state-run Xinhua news agency said. China has been taking concrete steps to improve communication and transparency with Western partners. However, to further develop their relations, China and the Western powers should work together, as partners rather than rivals, to deal with issues such as the global challenge presented by cyber security threats and to build mutual trust, especially in the military field.

Chinese Defense Minister Chang Wanquan has said that China and the US should maintain dialogue on multi-lateral occasions and keep building mutual trust to increase positive influence on the development of military relations. Chang said the two countries should also explore pragmatic cooperation in disaster-relief, counter-terrorism and peace-keeping within a multi-lateral framework to enhance capabilities of addressing non-traditional security challenges of the region. He noted that the two sides should further increase positive interactions within multi-lateral defense and security mechanisms and accommodate each other’s concerns.

Hagel said it is important to strengthen communication between defense departments and military leaders of the two countries. He expressed the hope that there will be further development of military ties between China and the US.

Officials are likely to play down those differences in this week’s talks. The Obama administration says resolving the cyber security issue is key to the future of ties between the world’s two largest economies, and U.S. businesses are also speaking out.