NO LEGAL BASIS:Taiwan does not recognize Japan’s claim of a 200 nautical mile economic zone around Okinotorishima atoll, which Tokyo declared unilaterally

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 26, 2016
By: Stacy Hsu / Staff reporter

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday urged the Japanese government to immediately release a Taiwanese fishing boat seized in disputed waters near the Okinotori atoll in the Pacific Ocean earlier yesterday.

The ministry said the Taiwanese fishing boat, Tung Sheng Chi No. 16, was chased by a Japan Coast Guard vessel on Sunday evening about 150 nautical miles (277.8km) east-southeast of the atoll and about 1,000 nautical miles east of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip.

Okinotorishima is a Japanese atoll that lies about halfway between Guam and Taiwan, and 1,700km from Tokyo. Beijing has long rejected Japan’s claim that the atoll is an island, describing it as a rock formation and saying that the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) around the atoll should not be recognized.

The ministry said Japan Coast Guard personnel boarded the Tung Sheng Chi No. 16 for inspection, before seizing the boat and arresting its crew.     [FULL  STORY]