TOKYO (AFP) — Japan seized a Chinese fishing boat and arrested its skipper, authorities said Friday, an incident that could deepen a spat between the Asian giants.

The episode on Thursday off southern Japan came three months after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested that Japan would intervene militarily if Beijing sought to take Taiwan by force.

“The vessel’s captain was ordered to stop for an inspection by a fisheries inspector, but the vessel failed to comply and fled,” Japan’s fisheries agency said.

“Consequently, the vessel’s captain was arrested on the same day,” it said in a statement.

The boat was inside Japan’s exclusive economic zone 166 kilometers south-southwest of Meshima island in the Goto archipelago, Japan’s statement said — not a disputed area.

China was yet to comment.

It was the first time since 2022 that the Japanese fisheries agency has seized a Chinese fishing boat.

The captain was named as Chinese national Zheng Nianli, 47. The status of the other 10 people on board the vessel, named the Qiong Dong Yu, was unclear.

“To prevent illegal fishing operations by foreign vessels, we will continue to take firm action and engage in enforcement activities,” chief government spokesperson Minoru Kihara said.