Japan is sending 100 soldiers and radar equipment to its westernmost outpost, a tropical island off Taiwan, in a deployment that risks angering China as ties between Asia's two biggest economies are already strained by a dispute over nearby islands.

In response, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying on Friday urged Japan to explain to the international community its real intention of enhancing military forces.

Japan should draw lessons from the history, follow a path of peaceful development, respect security concerns of neighboring countries and contribute to enhancing the mutual trust between countries and regional peace and stability, Hua said at a regular press briefing.

Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera will break ground on Saturday for a military lookout station on Yonaguni, which is home to 1,500 people and just 150 kilometers from the Diaoyu Islands.

The mini-militarization of Yonaguni - now defended by two police officers - is part of a longstanding plan to improve defense and surveillance in Japan's far-flung frontier.

Building the radar base on the island, which is much closer to China than to Japan's main islands, could extend Japanese monitoring to the Chinese mainland and track Chinese ships and aircraft circling the Diaoyu Islands.

Reuters - Xinhua