Su Yi has more.

 

　　China's foreign ministry is calling the trip by the Japanese activists "illegal" and "troublemaking".

 

　　Foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying:

 

　　"The Chinese Foreign Ministry has lodged a stern protest to Japan over Japanese nationalists sailing to waters near the Diaoyu islands to make trouble. The Chinese Marine Surveillance has dispatched a fleet of eight ships to the waters off the Diaoyu islands this morning. As far as we know, Japanese boats have left the waters."

 

　　China's State Oceanic Administration dispatched eight boats in waters near the islands, saying the Chinese ships were able to run the Japanese boats out of the region.

 

　　China's Ambassador to Japan has launched a formal complaint with the Japanese government, demanding all Japanese ships leave waters immediately.

 

　　Tensions have been running high between China and Japan over the group of islands in the East China Sea since last year.

 

　　At the same time, the Chinese government has issued its response, after over a hundred Japanese lawmakers visited the Yasukuni Shrine.

 

　　Spokesperson Hua Chunying again:

 

　　"How to reflect on history and how to handle the Yasukuni Shrine issue are important indicators Japan's Asian neighbors and the international community are monitoring to see what path Japan is going to take in the future. Whatever way the Japanese leaders use and whatever capacity they are with to visit the Yasukuni Shrine, the nature of their visits is to deny their military aggression past."

 

　　Despite strong protests from neighboring countries, a group of 169 Japanese lawmakers have made a visit to the Yasukuni Shrine.

 

　　The shrine remains highly controversial, given that fourteen Japanese World War II criminals are interred at the site.

 

　　The visit to the shrine by members of the Japanese cabinet has prompted the South Korean government to cancel a trip to Japan this week by the country's foreign minister.

 

　　For CRI, I'm Su Yi.