China violates Japanese waters with armed ships
A total of 13 Chinese vessels, six being armed, have been reported in the waters of Japan’s uninhabited Senkaku Islands. With both China and Taiwan bearing claims to these islands off the coast of Taiwan, Japan’s foreign ministry said: “The intrusion violates our nation’s sovereignty and is completely unacceptable."

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Beijing sent 13 vessels – six of them armed – into the waters of Japan's Senkaku Islands, which China claims as its own.

Accompanying them was a fleet of 230 fishing boats, sailing through Japanese waters in an "unacceptable" violation of its sovereignty.

It comes as Japanese emperor Akihito hinted at his wish to step down in his second ever televised address to the public, citing his deteriorating health.

Now Tokyo has summoned Chinese ambassador Cheng Yonghua for a dressing down, taking its complaint about the incursion to the highest level yet.

Kenji Kanasugi of the foreign ministry told the ambassador: “This is a unilateral act that raises tensions… and it is unacceptable to us”.

Vice Foreign Minister Shinsuke Sugiyama added: “The intrusion violates our nation’s sovereignty and is completely unacceptable."

Beijing was also discovered to have installed a radar with potential military applications on an oil rig in the disputed East China Sea.

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It's the second dispute to embroil the communist country in recent weeks, after an international tribunal ruled against its claim to the South China Sea.

Beijing has built heavily-armed artificial islands there to defend its claim to more than a million square miles of territory, but the court ruled against China.

It decided that the rocky outcrops it claims, some of which are submerged at high tide, cannot be used to extend its territory.

The South China Sea is believed to hold a wealth of untapped oil and gas reserves, and trillions of dollars of trade pass through it.

Appealing for a chance to step down, Emperor Akihito today told his people: "I am already 80 years old, and fortunately I am now in good health."

"However, when I consider that my fitness level is gradually declining, I am worried that it may become difficult for me to carry out my duties with my whole being as I have done until now."

He added: "In coping with the ageing of the emperor, I think it is not possible to continue reducing perpetually the Emperor's acts in matters of state and his duties."

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said the government took his remarks "seriously" and would discuss what could be done.

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The Senkaku Islands have been run by Japan since 1895, except for a period between 1945 and 1972 when they passed under US control.

China claims the discovery and ownership of the islands from the 14th century, as does Taiwan – which lies just 120 nautical miles to the south.

Japan recognises neither claim but has nonetheless stopped local authorities from developing the uninhabited islands.