TOKYO – Japan launched a strong protest to Russia on Wednesday after a Russian patrol boat opened fire on a Japanese vessel, killing a fisherman in the latest flare-up of a territorial dispute between the neighboring nations.
The crab fisherman was shot and killed near Kaigara island, one of several islands off the northeast tip of Hokkaido that are administered by Russia and claimed by Japan. Russia’s regional border patrol said he suffered a “fatal shot in the head.”
Japan insisted the boat was in Japanese waters, called the act “unacceptable,” and demanded immediate compensation and release of the boat and surviving crew.
“There has been a loss of life, and the situation is grave. Japan demands an immediate apology,” Foreign Minister Taro Aso said. “It’s unacceptable this took place within Japanese waters.”
Russian officials expressed “regret” over the death but defended the patrol boat’s actions, saying the Japanese ship had violated Russian waters and authorities acted within their powers.
The responsibility for the shootings lay “with the direct culprits and … with Japanese authorities that close their eyes to fishermen’s poaching in Russian territorial waters,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said.
Russian officials said the man, identified by Japanese media as Mitsuhiro Morita, 35, was killed by a warning shot as he rushed to recover fishing equipment aboard the fishing boat, which was “maneuvering dangerously” and tried to ram a Russian dinghy.
“They were not aiming (to kill),” Russian Deputy Ambassador Mikhail Galuzin said.
The three surviving crew members, who were not injured, were taken to a nearby island for questioning and will face criminal charges, according to national broadcaster NHK. The three have admitted they were fishing illegally, NHK said, citing Russian investigators.
Russian officials said they had discovered freshly caught crabs on the fishing boat: Japan’s Fishery Agency acknowledged that crab fishing in that area is illegal at this time of year under an agreement between the two nations.
The four islands – called the Kurils in Russia and the Northern Territories by Japan – were seized by the Soviet army near World War II’s end. Tokyo has demanded their return, and the dispute has blocked a treaty formally ending wartime hostilities.
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