YEREVAN, JANUARY 19, ARMENPRESS: Three Chinese ships Saturday entered Japanese territorial waters around disputed islands, hours after a veiled US warning to Beijing not to challenge Tokyo’s control, reports Armenpress referring to Itar-Tass.  The surveillance vessels sailed in waters around the islands known as the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyus in China for nearly five hours.

China has repeatedly sailed into the waters since Japan nationalized the chain in September, a move that triggered anger and demonstrations in China. Japanese patrol gunboats urged the Chinese to leave the area around the islands, but the latter ignored the demand.

The latest incident of this kind occurred on January 8th.

Tokyo integrated the Senkaku group of islands in 1895. Japan claims that the islands were inhabitable and therefore belonged to no one. But Beijing claims that the islands had been seized from China and should therefore be returned.