Hole in Japanese Destroyer after Collision with Chinese Fishing Boat

A Japanese Naval destroyer, Shimakaze sustained a one-meter hole on its portside following a collision with a Chinese fishing vessel whose crewman suffered injuries.

The incident took place at about 7:30 pm on Monday in the East China Sea waters east of Zhoushan, East China's Zhejiang Province.

“The collision occurred in the coastal waters of China. The Chinese side has expressed concern to the Japanese side over the Japanese Self-Defense Force warship sailing in the relevant waters and endangering the safety of the Chinese vessel,” Hua Chunying, Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Tuesday.

The cause of the incident is under investigation. "China and Japan are now in communication over the incident. We hope the Japanese side can actively cooperate and find the cause of the incident as soon as possible in order to prevent this kind of incident from happening again," Hua added.

Commissioned in 1988, the Shimakaze is 150 meters long and 16.4 meters wide, and has a full displacement of 5,900 tons.

Japan Ministry of Defense said that the vessel was on patrol after departing from Sasebo in Nagasaki Prefecture on Sunday morning.

On Monday, a Portuguese cruise ship crashed into one of the Venezuelan Navy’s Guaicamacuto-Class coastal surveillance ship in the Caribbean Sea, ultimately sinking the vessel.