Japan vows defense as China ships near disputed islands

TOKYO: Japan’s defense minister vowed on Sunday to defend the country’s territory as three Chinese government ships entered disputed waters off Tokyo-controlled islands in the East China Sea, the first such incident this year.

The Chinese coastguard vessels sailed into the 12-nautical-mile territorial waters at about 8:30 a.m. (2330 GMT Saturday) off one of the Senkaku islands, which China also claims and calls the Diaoyus, Japan’s coastguard said. They left less than two hours later.