Japan protests China’s repeated intrusions into waters near Senkakus

Japan strongly protested Chinese vessels’ repeated intrusions into its waters near the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea at their senior diplomats’ videoconference on Wednesday, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said.

At the meeting on maritime security, Japan urged China to take action to address Tokyo’s concerns about the Chinese ships’ activities around the group of Japanese-controlled islands, the ministry said. Beijing also claims the islands and calls them Diaoyu.

Japan is also concerned about recent moves by Chinese ships that appear to be approaching and chasing Japanese fishing boats in the waters near the Senkakus.

Takehiro Funakoshi, director general of the Japanese Foreign Ministry’s Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau, and Hong Liang, director general of the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Department of Boundary and Ocean Affairs, attended the videoconference.

The officials also confirmed the importance of maintaining communication about the situation in the East China Sea, it said.

They also exchanged views on an early establishment of a hotline between their defense officials to avoid accidental clashes at sea and in the air, the ministry said.