France and Australia became the latest United States allies to deploy forces to Japan for surveillance missions supporting United Nations (U.N.) sanctions against North Korea.
Newsweek has contacted the North Korean Embassy in Beijing for comment via email.
The U.N. Security Council has imposed sanctions on North Korea for its development of nuclear and missile programs. In addition to France and Australia, Canada, Italy, New Zealand and the United Kingdom have deployed military vessels and aircraft to Japan to monitor illicit North Korean activities at sea, including ship-to-ship transfers.
While operating in international waters and airspace over the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea to enforce U.N. sanctions, it is not uncommon for the Chinese military to intercept allied forces, often resulting in "unsafe and unprofessional" encounters. The most recent incident involved a Canadian maritime patrol aircraft earlier this month.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Japan's Foreign Ministry announced the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and the French Navy conducted operations to monitor and surveil illicit activities by North Korean ships from early to mid-October and from mid-October to mid-November, respectively.
The RAAF confirmed it deployed a P-8A maritime patrol aircraft to Kadena Air Base on Japan's Okinawa Island, which borders the East China Sea to the north, as part of a mission known as Operation Argos that began in 2018.
The French military said a Falcon 50M aircraft was deployed to U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma on Okinawa Island from Friday to November 12, marking the first participation of this type of aircraft in monitoring U.N. sanctions against North Korea.
In addition to the aircraft, France deployed a surveillance frigate as part of the mission. The warship concluded its visit to Yokosuka in Japan on Saturday and is set to make a stopover in Sasebo -- its second port call in Japan -- before beginning its mission.
To achieve the goal of the "complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," Japan's Foreign Ministry said the country must work closely with the international community to ensure the effective enforcement of relevant U.N. sanctions.
The most recent allied military deployment comes as North Korea advances its missile program, unveiling the Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile earlier this month, which is believed capable of conducting nuclear strikes anywhere on the U.S. mainland.
Japan's Foreign Ministry said in a press release on October 16: "Japan welcomes these activities from the viewpoint of ensuring effective implementation of the relevant [United Nations Security Council resolutions] in solidarity with the international community toward the realization of North Korea's dismantlement of all weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles of all ranges in a complete, verifiable, and irreversible manner."
Australian Vice Admiral Justin Jones, Chief of Joint Operations, said in a press release on October 10: "Australia remains committed to enforcing United Nations Security Council sanctions against North Korea until it takes concrete steps towards denuclearization...Our deployment reinforces Australia's strong commitment to uphold international law and support the rules-based global order."
It remains to be seen whether U.S. allies will deploy additional forces in Northeast Asia to strengthen surveillance, as North Korea refuses to give up its nuclear weapons.