SEA OF JAPAN

CURRENT CONTEXT : China and Russia have begun joint naval exercises in the Sea of Japan, a region of growing geopolitical interest in East Asia.

 ABOUT SEA OF JAPAN

Geography and Location

• Marginal Sea of the Western Pacific Ocean, also known as the East Sea (especially in Korea).
• Boundaries:
  • East: Japan and Sakhalin (Russia)
  • West: Mainland Russia, North Korea, and South Korea

Physical Features

• Area: Approximately 978,000 sq.km
• Shape: Elliptical, aligned from southwest to northeast
• Average Depth: 1,667 meters
• Deepest Point: Dohoku Seamount (underwater volcano)

Connecting Straits

• South: Tsushima Strait and Korea Strait (to East China Sea)
• North: La Perouse and Tatar Straits (to Sea of Okhotsk)
• East: Kanmon Strait (to Inland Sea of Japan), Tsugaru Strait (to Pacific Ocean)

IMPORTANT PORTS

• Russia: Vladivostok, Sovetskaya Gavan,Nakhodka, Alexandrovsk-Sakhalinsky, Kholmsk
• North Korea:Hamhung, Chongjin, Wonsan
• Japan:Niigata, Tsuruta, Maizuru