US Vice President Joe Biden is making it clear that America will defend the Japanese-controlled Senkaku Islands from Chinese provocations and territorial claims.  Biden is visiting the three nations most directly involved with China’s newly claimed Air Defense Zone in the East China Sea.

“This action has raised regional tensions and increased the risk of accidents and miscalculation,” the US vice president said at a joint news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo.

Japan and the US need to synchronize their response to China, after it became known that three US airlines, acting on government advice, are notifying China of plans to transit the area.  Japan is telling its airlines to ignore China’s demands and to continue to fly the same routes they’ve flown for decades.

“We reaffirmed that policies and measures of both our countries, including the operations of the (Japanese) Self-Defense Forces and US forces, will not change and we will closely cooperate,” Abe told the news conference.

Biden blamed China for raising tensions with Japan and South Korea, which he said would “increase the risk of accidents and miscalculation” in the wide flight path above the Senkakus.  But he stopped short of demanding that Beijing withdraw its declaration.  He promised to press the issue at his next stop, Beijing.

He urged both countries and South Korea to work towards reducing tensions in the region.