The Japanese coast guard has sent a US$170,000 bill to a Chinese trawler captain who Japan says deliberately rammed two Japanese coast guard vessels in waters near disputed islands, the South China Morning Post reported. Items on the bill include the cost of repairs to the ships and the cost of related official travel. The ramming incident resulted in a high-profile diplomatic dispute between the two countries when Japan detained the captain, Zhan Qixiong, for 17 days before returning him to China. China subsequently demanded an apology and compensation from Japan for infringing on China’s territorial sovereignty, but Japan declined to do so. China has intensified patrols in the disputed waters since then, and in response, Japan has shifted its defense focus from Russia toward China.
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