A Japanese naval survey ship entered Japanese waters on Saturday, the second incursion into Japanese territory by Chinese troops in less than a week, and Japan protested to China.
In recent years, China has increased its military activities near Japan and around Taiwan, causing concern in Tokyo. Japan has responded by beefing up its defenses, saying it aims to prevent Beijing from using force to advance its territorial claims in the region.
Japan’s Defense Ministry said the ship was spotted off the coast of Kagoshima Prefecture in southwestern Japan at around 6 a.m. local time (2100 GMT Friday) and left within two hours.
Tokyo “expresses strong concern and protest over this incident,” Japan’s foreign ministry said in a statement, which also cited the first intrusion of Chinese military aircraft into its airspace on Monday.
Tokyo told Chinese diplomats earlier this week that Monday’s violation of its airspace was “completely unacceptable.”
Reuters’ calls to the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo outside normal business hours went unanswered.
According to state broadcaster NHK, Saturday’s incident was the tenth time in the past year that a Chinese naval survey ship has sailed through Japan’s territorial waters, and the 13th time if submarines and other intelligence-gathering vessels are included. Passing through Japanese territorial waters.
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