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Japan to deport activists in islands row | |
(about 1 hour later) | |
Japan is to deport a group of activists who sailed to disputed islands, the government has confirmed. | |
Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda had agreed to recommendations to send the group back, the top government spokesman said. | |
The group sailed from Hong Kong to islands known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China on Wednesday. | |
The case has sparked a diplomatic row and a number of small protests outside Japanese diplomatic missions. | The case has sparked a diplomatic row and a number of small protests outside Japanese diplomatic missions. |
"We have confirmed that our response will be to deport those involved," Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura told journalists in Tokyo. | |
"There is still some paperwork to go through, so I can't comment on exactly what time this will happen." | |
Mr Noda, speaking ahead of a weekly cabinet meeting, said it was "extremely regrettable that they illegally smuggled themselves on to our island of Senkaku despite our repeated warnings not to". | |
Peaceful resolution | Peaceful resolution |
China has repeatedly called for the activists' immediate release. Small groups of protesters also gathered outside Japanese diplomatic missions in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong. | |
It is the first time non-Japanese nationals have landed on the islands - which are controlled by Japan - since 2004. | It is the first time non-Japanese nationals have landed on the islands - which are controlled by Japan - since 2004. |
Both Japan and China lodged formal protests with each other over the incident, while the US urged the two nations to resolve the conflict peacefully. | |
Largely uninhabited, the islands are close to strategically important shipping lanes, offer rich fishing grounds and are thought to contain oil deposits. Taiwan also claims them. | |
Rows over the disputed islands have caused Sino-Japanese ties to freeze in the past. | |
In September 2010, relations plummeted after the arrest of a Chinese trawler captain near the islands. | |
The captain was accused of ramming two Japanese patrol vessels in the area, but Japan eventually dropped the charges against him. | The captain was accused of ramming two Japanese patrol vessels in the area, but Japan eventually dropped the charges against him. |