Fearing China Clash, Japan Asks Fishermen to Avoid Flashpoint Islands

A China Coast Guard vessel sails near a Japan Coast Guard vessel around a group of disputed islands called the Senkaku Islands in Japan, also known in China as the Diaoyu Islands, September 14, 2025. Hitoshi Nakama/Handout via REUTERS

By Mariko Katsumura, Tim Kelly, Nobuhiro Kubo and John Geddie

Hitoshi Nakama, 76, sees himself as a frontline defender of Japan’s claims to disputed islands in the East China Sea, where he regularly evades Chinese coast guard ships to harvest the bountiful waters.

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by Reuters

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