Japan Protests China Blocking Coast Guards

The Japanese government lodged a protest with the Chinese regime after a Chinese vessel prevented the Japanese coastguard from doing a survey in the East China Sea. The incident took place near the southern Okinawa prefecture. The BBC cited Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura as saying, [quote] "We told China via diplomatic channels that we are conducting legitimate marine research within our Exclusive Economic Zone…the activity cannot be halted." Both countries stake exclusive excavation rights to a natural gas field in the disputed waters. This is not the first time tensions have risen over maritime rights between the two countries. China has been regularly drilling in areas less than three miles away from Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone since 2003, and a dispute over the East China Sea previously flared up in 2010.