China ships sail in waters near disputed islands

Six Chinese surveillance ships briefly entered waters around islands claimed by both Japan and China, amid a bitter territorial dispute.

China said the ships were carrying out “law enforcement” to show jurisdiction over the islands, called Diaoyu in China and Senkaku in Japan.

Three vessels left after a short time and the other three have now also left, the Japanese coast guard said.

The move came after Japan sealed a deal to buy three of the islands.

Japan controls the uninhabited but resource-rich East China Sea islands, which are also claimed by Taiwan.

Three were in the hands of a private Japanese owner but the Japanese government bought them earlier this week.

The Japanese Coast Guard said the first two Chinese boats entered Japan’s territorial waters at 06:18 local time (21:18 GMT Thursday), followed by another fleet of four other ships just after 07:00.

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Article courtesy of the BBC.