Japan seizure of Chinese vessel, arrest of captain, could heighten tensions 

Japanese authorities have seized a Chinese fishing vessel and arrested the captain for allegedly defying an order to stop for ⁠inspection by fisheries authorities in Japan’s exclusive maritime economic zone, officials said.

While Japan has seized fishing vessels from South Korea and Taiwan in recent years, ⁠the incident is the first ⁠involving a Chinese vessel since 2022 and could inflame tensions between Tokyo and Beijing, following a bitter diplomatic dispute between the two ⁠countries late last year.

Japan’s Fisheries Agency said on Friday that the boat’s captain, a 47-year-old Chinese national, was arrested and accused of “trying to evade an onboard inspection” in ‌waters off Japan’s southwest Nagasaki Prefecture on Thursday, 89.4 nautical miles (165km) south-southwest of Meshima Island, the Kyodo News agency reports.

“The vessel’s captain was ordered to stop for an inspection by a fisheries inspector, but the vessel failed to comply and fled,” the agency said in a statement.

“Consequently, the vessel’s captain was arrested on the same day,” the agency said. There were a further 10 people on board at the time, the agency added.

Japanese broadcaster NHK said the vessel was “capable of catching a large quantity of fish such as mackerel and horse mackerel”.

“The agency suspects the boat may have entered Japan’s EEZ (exclusive economic zone) to conduct illicit fishing. It has not disclosed whether the captain admitted to the allegations, saying it might influence the investigation,” NHK reports.

China’s ‌Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday from the Reuters news agency.

China has a number of territorial disputes with Japan, and there have been repeated incidents around Japan’s Senkaku Islands, which are known as the Diaoyu Islands in China.

Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara told a regular news conference on Friday that Japan “will continue to take resolute action in our ⁠enforcement activities to prevent and deter ⁠illegal fishing operations by foreign vessels”.

In November, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi enraged China by suggesting that Japan could intervene militarily if Beijing sought to take Taiwan – which it claims as Chinese territory – by force.

Beijing summoned Tokyo’s ambassador to denounce Takaichi’s remarks, warned Chinese citizens against visiting Japan and conducted joint air drills with Russia in the East China Sea and western Pacific Ocean.

China also tightened controls on exports to Japan for items with potential military uses and reportedly suspended imports of Japanese seafood.