Tokyo, Jan. 15, (dpa/GNA) – Tokyo has lodged a protest with Beijing over Chinese government vessels repeatedly spotted near a group of uninhabited islets in the East China Sea.
Chinese coastguard ships entered what Japan considers to be its territorial waters near the Japanese-administered Senkaku Islands for the third day in a row, Tokyo said.
One Chinese coastguard ship entered Japan’s territorial waters on Friday morning and tried to approach a Japanese fishing boat, government spokesman Katsunobu Kato told a news conference.
“The Japan Coast Guard repeatedly urged the ship to leave the area,” Kato said.
“We have lodged a serious protest [to China] through diplomatic channels,” he added. The incident was “very regrettable,” he said.
Also on Friday morning, three other Chinese vessels were spotted in the contiguous zone near the islets.
China and Taiwan also claim the islets, where they are known as Diaoyu and Tiaoyutai, respectively.
In 2012, Japan’s purchase of some of the Senkakus set off anti-Japan protests in dozens of Chinese cities and a boycott of Japanese products.
GNA