ニュース 2010/09/08 Kan, Sengoku comment on incident involving Japan coastguard patrol boat and Chinese fishing vessel near Senkakus On September 8, Prime Minister Naoto Kan was asked by reporters what the future response of the government would be regarding the incident in which a Chinese fishing vessel and a Japan coastguard patrol boat had collided in Japanese territorial waters near the Senkaku Islands, and the subsequent arrest of the captain of the Chinese vessel, which had brought forth a strong reaction from the Chinese government, including protests made to the Japanese ambassador to Beijing. Kan replied in a calm manner, saying, “We are intending to respond in an impartial manner based on Japanese law.” On the same day, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku held his regular press conference at the Prime Minister’s Office. He announced that in the early hours of the morning the Japanese coastguard had obtained a warrant for the arrest of the captain of a Chinese vessel anchored off the coast of the Senkaku Islands on suspicion of obstruction of official business, and carried out its immediate implementation. Sengoku said, “Our nation will respond impartially according to the law.” Regarding the arrest, he commented, “The authorities had decided on it according to the characteristics and the degree of seriousness of the case.” Sengoku stressed that this incident would have no impact on Japan-China relations, and revealed that the government intended to deal with the incident in a calm manner.