A Chinese fishing trawler, Minjinyu, collided with a 1,349-ton Japanese patrol boat, Yonakuni, near the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea on Tuesday. Two other Japanese patrol boats then reportedly chased and hit Minjinyu, and six Japanese personnel boarded it when it stopped and questioned the Chinese fishermen.

Later on Tuesday, several Japanese government departments, such as the Cabinet Secretariat, the Coast Guard and the Foreign Ministry, held emergency meetings, after which an arrest warrant was reportedly issued against the captain of the Chinese fishing trawler for what they describes as obstructing law enforcement. A senior Japanese official said the captain, a 41-year-old Chinese national, "will be taken to prosecutors or police and will be (questioned) under Japanese procedures".

China's Foreign Ministry has expressed grave concern over the incident. Vice-Foreign Minister Song Tao summoned Japanese ambassador to China Uichiro Niwa on Tuesday and lodged "solemn representations" with the Japanese side.