Japanese authorities seized a Chinese fishing boat and arrested its skipper, authorities said Friday, in a move likely to further heighten tensions with Beijing.
The episode on Thursday off southern Japan came three months after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested that Japan would intervene militarily if Beijing sought to take Taiwan by force.
¡°The vessel¡¯s captain was ordered to stop for an inspection by a fisheries inspector, but the vessel failed to comply and fled,¡± Japan¡¯s fisheries agency said.
¡°Consequently, the vessel¡¯s captain was arrested on the same day,¡± according to a statement.
The boat was inside Japan¡¯s exclusive economic zone 166 kilometers south-southwest of Meshima Island in the Goto archipelago, Japan¡¯s statement said ¡ª not a disputed area.
It was the first time since 2022 that the Japanese fisheries agency has seized a Chinese fishing boat.
The captain was named as Chinese national Zheng Nianli, 47. The status of the other 10 people on board the vessel, named the Qiong Dong Yu, was unclear.
¡°To prevent illegal fishing operations by foreign vessels, we will continue to take firm action and engage in enforcement activities,¡± chief government spokesman Minoru Kihara said.
Beijing urged Tokyo on Friday to protect the rights of the crew members.
¡°It is hoped Japan strictly respects the China-Japan fisheries agreement, fairly enforces the law and safeguards the safety and legitimate rights and interests of Chinese crew members,¡± foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a news conference.
China has a number of territorial disputes with Japan, and there have been repeated incidents around the Senkaku Islands, known as the Diaoyu in China.
The arrest of another Chinese fishing boat captain in 2010 off those islands in the East China Sea became a major diplomatic incident between the two countries.
Japan and China have close economic ties but Takaichi¡¯s comments about Taiwan have sent relations spiraling downward again.
China has long insisted that Taiwan, occupied for decades by Japan until 1945, is its territory and has not ruled out force to achieve ¡°reunification.¡±
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te said in an interview this week that countries in the region would be China¡¯s next targets should Beijing seize the democratic island.
Lai said if China were to take Taiwan, Beijing would become ¡°more aggressive, undermining peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific and the rules-based international order.¡±
¡°The next countries under threat would be Japan, the Philippines and others in the Indo-Pacific region, with repercussions eventually reaching the Americas and Europe,¡± he said.
After Takaichi¡¯s comments, Beijing summoned Tokyo¡¯s ambassador, warned Chinese citizens against visiting Japan and conducted joint air drills with Russia.
In December, J-15 jets from China¡¯s Liaoning aircraft carrier twice locked radar on Japanese aircraft...
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