Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan said Wednesday that China's
interests in and jurisdiction over Chinese exclusive economic zone
should be fully respected.
In
December last year, a Japanese vessel chased an unidentified boat
into the Chinese exclusive economic zone and sank the boat in the
East China Sea. The Chinese government expressed strong opposition
to the issue, Tang told a press conference of the Fifth Session of
the Ninth National People's Congress in replying to a Japanese
reporter's question on the issue.
Tang stressed that the Chinese side would fully safeguard interests
in and jurisdiction over the Chinese exclusive economic zone in
accordance with relevant laws.
The press conference lasted 65 minutes with some 600 reporters
attending.
(Xinhua News
Agency March 6, 2002)