Japan arrested the activists, but deported them soon after, thus avoiding a prolonged confrontation with China. The Japanese authorities clearly learned a lesson from their detention of a Chinese fishing boat captain two years ago, when they eventually acceded to Chinese pressure – which included a range of harsh, and escalating, political and economic measures– to release him.
日本逮捕了这些保钓人士，但很快将他们递解出境，以此避免了冲突的继续拖延。日本当局显然已经得到了教训，因为两年前他们曾经逮捕了一位中国渔船船长，但最终屈服于中国的压力——包括一系列严厉且不断加码的政治和经济手段——将其释放。