TOKYO (AFP) — Japan on Tuesday played down a row over the sinking of a Taiwanese fishing boat that collided with a Japanese patrol ship near disputed islets in the East China Sea.
"We have already agreed with (Taiwan) to handle the issue calmly without getting excited," Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura told a news conference.
Tokyo called for calm and said it was "very regrettable" that a protest boat along with nine patrol ships from Taiwan had entered Japanese territorial waters on Monday to protest last week's sinking of the vessel.
Local media said it was the first time that foreign patrol boats had entered Japanese waters to accompany a protest ship.
Japan's coastguard said the protest boat entered its waters near the uninhabited islands, known as the Senkaku in Japanese and the Diaoyu in Chinese, shortly before 6 am on Monday (2100 GMT Sunday).
The ship spent some 2.5 hours in Japanese waters, circling around the main island before leaving, Japanese officials said.
Japan administers the disputed chain, which lies near rich energy deposits, but it is also claimed by Taipei and Beijing.
Taiwan's de facto envoy to Japan, who returned from Tokyo over the weekend, said Monday he was resigning amid criticism over the way he handled the incident.
The US State Department called Monday on Japan and Taiwan to exercise restraint in the dispute.
All 16 people on the Taiwanese boat that sank near the islets were rescued by the Japanese ship and returned home after questioning last week.
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