BEIJING ( WNAM MONITORING ): China and Japan exchanged heated words after Chinese Coast Guard vessels patrolled off the disputed waters near the Senkaku, also known as the Diaoyu.
After four China Coast Guard vessels entered the surrounding waters of the disputed islets on Sunday, Japan on Monday protested with Beijing, according to Japanese public broadcaster NHK.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Kihara Minoru said that Tokyo lodged a “stern protest” through diplomatic channels over what he called a violation of international law, demanding that the vessels leave.
In response to remarks by Japan, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said on Tuesday that Beijing’s actions are “legitimate, lawful and fully justified.”
“Diaoyu Dao and its affiliated islands have always been China’s territory. The patrols and law enforcement of China Coast Guard vessels in China’s territorial waters are legitimate, lawful and fully justified,” Mao told a news conference in Beijing.
She said that China does not accept the “groundless protest of the Japanese side,” and lodged a counter-protest, urging Japan to “respect China’s territorial sovereignty.”
The development came after tensions heightened following remarks by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi over possible military action by China against Taiwan, which triggered a backlash from Beijing.
Amid tensions, the Japanese Foreign Ministry’s Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau chief Masaaki Kanai on Tuesday held talks with his Chinese counterpart Liu Jinsong in Beijing.
