10 Japanese fishing boats to operate near disputed Senkaku Islands+

NAHA, Japan, July 3 Kyodo -
About 10 fishing boats belonging to a fishery cooperative in Ishigaki, Okinawa Prefecture, left a local port Sunday to operate in waters off the Senkaku Islands, which are controlled by Japan but claimed by China and Taiwan.
The boats will operate in the East China Sea for two to three days, except for one, owned by a political group, which is scheduled to return to Ishigaki port early Monday, according to the group's members.
The vessels will conduct fishing in the area and send images of the activity to the world to ''prove'' that the islands and surrounding waters belong to Japan, the members said. There is no plan to set foot on the territory, they said.
Meanwhile, the Japan Coast Guard's regional headquarters in Naha said it confirmed a Chinese fishery patrol boat was navigating in a contiguous area off one of the islands at around 6:40 a.m. Sunday.
When coast guard members warned the vessel not to enter Japanese waters, the boat's crew asserted it was operating in waters under Chinese jurisdiction, but left the contiguous area at around 10:40 a.m.
==Kyodo