Beijing has postponed diplomatic talks with Tokyo planned for later this month after Japan extended the detention of the captain of a Chinese trawler, as a row between the nations deepened.
The neighbours had been scheduled to hold talks in mid-September on issues relating to the East China Sea, where the Chinese boat and two Japanese coast guard vessels collided on Tuesday near an island chain claimed by both sides.
But Beijing, which has warned Tokyo of a ‘serious impact’ on ties if the trawler and its crew are not released, pushed back the meeting, accusing Japan of acting ‘recklessly’ and voicing its ‘strong discontent and grave protest’.
‘China has decided to postpone the second round of talks... on issues relating to the East China Sea planned for mid-September,’ foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said in a statement.
‘The Japanese side has ignored China's repeated solemn representations and firm opposition, and obstinately decided to put the Chinese captain under the so-called judiciary procedures,’ Ms Jiang said.
‘Japan's acts have violated the law of nations and basic international common sense, and are ridiculous, illegal and invalid,’ she added.
‘Japan will reap as it has sown, if it continues to act recklessly.’
China has so far summoned Japan's ambassador three times over the incident, with Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi receiving Uichiro Niwa on Friday and demanding the unconditional release of the fishing boat's captain and crew.
Tokyo suspects the captain deliberately rammed the two Japanese vessels in a confrontation near the disputed island chain which began on Tuesday morning, and ended after four Japanese patrol boats pursued the Chinese trawler.
The uninhabited islands - known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China - lie between Japan's Okinawa island and Taiwan. They are claimed by Tokyo, Beijing and Taipei and are frequently the focus of regional tensions.
Mr Yang on Friday ‘emphasised that the Chinese government's determination to safeguard the sovereignty of the Diaoyu islands and the nation's people is firm and steadfast’, his ministry said.
Territorial disputes in the East China Sea have repeatedly led to strains in Sino-Japanese ties. There are four controversial Chinese gas fields in the sea that Japan says extend into its own exclusive economic zone.
On Thursday, Ms Jiang said a Chinese ‘law enforcement’ ship had been sent to the area to ‘protect the safety’ of the fishermen working there.
The boat's captain, 41-year-old Zhan Qixiong, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of obstructing officers on duty - a charge that carries a maximum sentence of three years' imprisonment. The crew is in detention.
A Japanese court on Friday gave its approval for prosecutors to keep the Chinese captain in detention for up to 10 more days, until 20 September.
Under Japanese law, suspects can be held without charge for an initial three days. Detention can be prolonged twice for 10 days each time with court approval, meaning a suspect can be held for 23 days before they must be indicted or freed.
Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada on Friday urged China to handle the issue ‘calmly and carefully’.
‘We are just acting in accordance with the law,’ Okada said.
In another sign of rising tensions, Japan voiced concern Friday over China's growing military might, highlighting increased Chinese naval activities near its shores, and called for more transparency from Beijing on military spending.
