The number of Chinese naval vessels found in Japan's exclusive economic waters increased sharply this fiscal year, the Maritime Self-Defense Force announced Tuesday.
MSDF Chief of Staff Kosei Fujita said that P3C patrol planes sighted a total of 31 Chinese vessels on seven different occasions crossing over the central line between the overlapping exclusive economic zones of Japan and China in fiscal 1999.
Only one or two Chinese naval vessels had been spotted each year in the waters previously, the MSDF said.