The Russian Kilo-class submarine was sighted just 50 kilometers (31 miles) south of Yonaguni Island, Japan’s westernmost territory just east of Taiwan, the Japanese Joint Staff said in a statement.
The submarine, accompanied by a Russian naval ship, was moving northeast between Yonaguni and the nearby island of Iriomote. It was the first sighting of a Russian submarine in those waters, the Joint Staff said.
It added that Japan’s Self-Defense Forces deployed a combat support ship and a P-3 survey aircraft for warning and reconnaissance operations. There was no breach of Japan’s territorial waters by the Russian warships, it said.
I always wondered how much the reacting force is fudging their readiness when they can be reasonably sure that it’s a provocation.
Readiness in 15min? Make that half an hour so the enemy plans accordingly