Japan said Monday it had received no protest from Beijing after the arrest of a Chinese fishing boat captain deep inside Japanese waters, a year after relations plunged following another maritime incident.
A Japanese coastguard patrol boat spotted two Chinese fishing boats Sunday in undisputed waters close to the Goto Islands, off the southwest coast, and gave chase when the vessels refused to stop for an on-board inspection.
The 47-year-old captain of one of the fishing boats was arrested after a four-and-a-half-hour chase and was detained along with 10 crew members. The patrol boat rammed the vessel to stop it getting away.
"We have seen these cases in the past. This case will be processed under the relevant Japanese law," Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura told a regular press briefing.
"There has not been any particular opinions expressed by China. It will progress in a straight-forward manner."
The captain has been cooperating with Japanese investigators, local media said, and officials said they did not expect the incident to affect Japan-China relations.
In Beijing, there was no reaction from the government and no mention in the official media.
The Asian rivals have often had tense ties, particularly over disputed islands in the East China Sea called Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China.
Relations deteriorated markedly in September 2010 when Japan arrested the captain of a Chinese trawler which rammed two coastguard patrol boats near the disputed islands.
China reacted with fury, issuing protests and scrapping meetings and cultural events in a diplomatic offensive that continued after Japan freed the captain, while nationalist sentiment sparked demonstrations in both countries.
