Japans prime minister Shinzo Abe poses with members of Japanese idol group Momoiro Clover Z. Photograph: Reuters <\/p>\n
David McNeill, Clifford Coonan <\/p>\n
Asias two economic giants Japan and China squared off against each other over a chain of disputed islands and a visit to a controversial shrine to Japanese war dead that angers many in China and other parts of the continent. <\/p>\n
Japans prime minister Shinzo Abe upped the ante in a simmering territorial row with Beijing by vowing to expel any Chinese who attempt to land on the islands, known as the Senkakus in Japan and the Diaoyu islands in China. <\/p>\n
The warning, issued after Chinas latest incursion into Japans territorial waters, is the first time Mr Abe has threatened to use force since Japan controversially nationalised the string of islands last September, which lie about 1,800 km southwest of Tokyo. <\/p>\n
We would take decisive action against any attempt to enter our territorial waters and to land, Mr Abe told parliament yesterday. <\/p>\n
It would be natural for us to expel by force the Chinese if they were to make a landing. <\/p>\n
Largest incursion Japans coast guard said earlier that eight Chinese patrol ships had entered waters near the islands yesterday, the latest episode in a long-running game of cat and mouse. The incursion is the largest since the dispute began. <\/p>\n
For its part, Chinas ambassador to Japan, Cheng Yonghua protested Japans intrusion into waters around the islands and demanded that all Japanese ships leave the waters immediately, according to a report by the Chinese state news agency Xinhua. <\/p>\n
Correct approach Chinas State Oceanic Administration said the Chinese vessels had driven Japanese fishing boats out of waters surrounding the Diaoyu islands, thwarting the attempts of Japanese right wingers, the agency said on its website. <\/p>\n
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Japan PM warns Chinese over landing on disputed islands<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Japans prime minister Shinzo Abe poses with members of Japanese idol group Momoiro Clover Z. Photograph: Reuters David McNeill, Clifford Coonan Asias two economic giants Japan and China squared off against each other over a chain of disputed islands and a visit to a controversial shrine to Japanese war dead that angers many in China and other parts of the continent. Continue reading