THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
September 28, 2020 at 17:35 JST
The disputed Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea in 2013 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
A Japan Coast Guard patrol vessel was involved in a minor collision with a Taiwanese fishing boat that was operating illegally near the disputed Senkaku Islands on Sept. 27, officials said.
No major damage or injuries were reported.
The 180-ton Kurima of the Coast Guard’s Regional Maritime Safety Headquarters based in Miyakojima island spotted the Taiwanese fishing boat in Japanese territorial waters in the East China Sea and issued warnings.
The Kurima and the fishing boat ran side by side, but after 3 p.m., the Taiwanese vessel veered right and hit the patrol vessel’s bow, officials said.
The fishing boat left Japan’s territorial waters after the incident and exited the contiguous zone just outside the territorial waters around 8:20 p.m., they added.
“A fishing boat came close to a patrol vessel that warned the boat to leave. Then they had a collision,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato said at a news conference on Sept. 28. “We will conduct a necessary investigation and respond properly.”
Taiwan’s Ocean Affairs Council’s Coast Guard Administration also said it will discuss the handling of the incident and other issues with Japanese officials. The boat was pulling up fishing nets when the accident occurred, Taiwanese officials said.
The Senkaku Islands in Okinawa Prefecture are under the administration of Japan but are also claimed by China and Taiwan.
Japan and Taiwan in 2013 signed a fisheries agreement, allowing Taiwanese fishing boats within part of Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) around the islands, but not within Japanese territorial waters.
(This article was written by Shinichi Fujiwara, Shun Niekawa and Koichiro Ishida, a correspondent in Taipei.)
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