TOKYO: Ten Russian navy ships have passed through the Tsugaru Strait between Japan’s Honshu main island and the country’s northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, the Japanese Defense Ministry said Friday.

In February, the navy conducted a large-scale maritime exercise in Russia’s Far East region in step with Russian forces stationed around Ukraine. The 10 warships are believed to have participated in that exercise.

“It is concerning that the Russian military is stepping up operations around Japan while Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues,” Defense Minister KISHI Nobuo told a press conference Friday. “We will keep a close watch with a sense of tension,” he added. Kishi also said that Japan has expressed its concern through diplomatic channels.

Around 2 a.m. Thursday (5 p.m. Wednesday GMT), Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force patrol aircraft found the 10 ships, including a Udaloy-class destroyer, sailing in the Pacific Ocean at a point some 180 kilometers east-northeast of Cape Erimo in Hokkaido, according to the ministry.

The 10 ships passed through the Tsugaru Strait from Thursday night to early Friday, heading for the Sea of Japan. It appears that they did not intrude into Japanese territorial waters.

This is the first time Russian navy vessels passed through the Tsugaru Strait since last October when Russian and Chinese warships passed through the strait together.

The Self-Defense Forces is closely monitoring the Russian moves, which could have come in response to Japan’s sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and Japanese support for the country under attack.

JIJI Press