ISTANBUL

A provincial governor in Japan on Saturday slammed a visit by the US ambassador to two remote islands that lie close to Taiwan.

“To visit an area near Taiwan increases the tension. We are monitoring (the situation) closely so that it doesn't cause further friction,” Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki told reporters.

His comment came after Washington’s Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel Friday visited the country’s westernmost Yonaguni Island, located around 100 kilometers (62 miles) east of Taiwan, Tokyo-based Kyodo News reported.

Emanuel also visited Ishigaki Island, about 130 kilometers (80 miles) east of Yonaguni.

Tamaki also criticized the use of a commercial airport by Emanuel to fly a US Marine Corps transport plane for his visit.

“If one commercial airport is used, will it not lead to others being potentially utilized (by US forces in Japan) as well?" the governor asked.

The US has over 50,000 soldiers deployed in Japan under a bilateral defense pact.

Emanuel’s trip to islands close to Taiwan, which China claims as its “breakaway province,” came a few days before William Lai's inauguration as the new president in Taipei.

The US has increased its engagements with Taiwan under outgoing President Tsai ing-wen, while Beijing has declared William as “dangerous separatist.”

"At the sharp end of patrolling and policing Japan’s territorial waters. In the face of Chinese coercion and incursions, the men and women of Japan’s Coast Guard set sail each day to uphold international maritime laws," Emanuel said on X, with a photo with Japanese Coast Guard personnel during his trip to the region.