China snubs Japan's protest over patrol near disputed islands
By KH디지털2Published : Nov. 26, 2014 - 18:12
China on Wednesday rejected Japan's protest of its neighbor sending coast guard vessels into waters near a set of islands at the center of a territorial dispute between the two nations.
The patrol by Chinese vessels in waters near the islands, called Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, was the first since Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held their first one-on-one meeting earlier this month, raising hopes for a thaw in ties.
Japan lodged a protest with China for its movements in the East China Sea, according to Japanese media reports.
Asked about the reported protest by Japan, China's foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying replied, "The Diaoyu islands and their affiliated areas are China's inherent territory."
Hua said the Chinese coast guard vessels are "just performing their duty and practicing sovereignty in accordance with law."
"Japan should be cautious about what it says and we urge it to stop saying anything that undermines China's sovereignty," Hua said.
Xi and Abe held the bilateral summit on Nov. 10 on the sidelines of the APEC gathering in Beijing. (Yonhap)