Two Chinese coast guard vessels entered waters claimed by Japan around the disputed Senkaku Islands early on Tuesday, approaching a Japanese fishing boat before being ordered to leave by Japan’s coast guard, according to Japanese authorities. The ships departed the area by approximately 9:20 a.m. local time. China’s coast guard issued a parallel statement asserting that it had expelled a Japanese fishing vessel, the Zuihou Maru, which it said had illegally entered Chinese territorial waters near the same islands, known in China as the Diaoyu.

Japan’s coast guard, in a statement, described the Chinese vessels’ activities as “a violation of international law” and said it deployed its own ships around the Japanese fishing boat to ensure its safety. It pledged to “continue to respond calmly and resolutely in accordance with international and domestic law.” From Beijing’s perspective, the Chinese coast guard stated that its ships took “necessary measures to warn and expel” the Japanese trawler, framing the operation as a lawful defence of Chinese sovereignty. The uninhabited island chain, located between Taiwan and Japan’s Okinawa prefecture, has been a source of friction for decades, with both Tokyo and Beijing asserting historical and legal claims.

The confrontation is the first reported intrusion by Chinese official ships into Japanese-claimed waters since 10 June, according to Japanese records. It unfolds against a backdrop of deepening bilateral tensions. In November, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi remarked that Tokyo could consider a military response in the event of an attack on Taiwan, a self-governing island that China claims as its own. Beijing condemned the comments, subsequently advising its citizens against travel to Japan and tightening trade restrictions on some Japanese companies. Separately, the United States has voiced “great concern” over China’s recent test launch of a nuclear-capable missile from a submarine, with the State Department urging Beijing to engage in substantive arms control discussions. These developments have compounded regional security anxieties, with Washington reaffirming its alliance commitments to Tokyo.

No diplomatic channel has been publicly activated to de-escalate the immediate dispute. Both coast guards have signalled that routine patrols will continue, and each side reserves the right to act under its own interpretation of international law. The Senkaku/Diaoyu waters remain a persistent maritime flashpoint, where encounters between state vessels carry the risk of unintended escalation. The dossier remains open, with no scheduled talks between the two governments on the territorial question.