China has started making concerted efforts to chase Japanese ships out of waters surrounding disputed islands in the East China Sea, ratcheting up tensions between Asia’s largest economies.
The Chinese State Oceanic Administration, which enforces the nation’s maritime interests, said four of its ships yesterday tried to expel Japanese vessels from waters where they were operating “illegally”.
Japan controls the islands, which it calls the Senkaku, but they are also claimed by China, which calls them the Diaoyu, and Taiwan. The Japanese coastguard in recent months has been playing cat and mouse with Chinese vessels sailing near the islands, the ships sometimes entering waters that Japan says are its territory.