Japan to Set Up Police Unit to Help Defend Disputed Islets and Counter China: NHK

Japan Coast Guard vessel PS206 Houou sails in front of Uotsuri island, one of the disputed islands, called Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, in the East China Sea on Aug. 18, 2013. Ruairidh Villar/Reuters

TOKYO–Japan is bolstering its defense of a group of East China Sea islets disputed with China and other far-flung isles, with the establishment of a special police unit armed with automatic weapons, the public broadcaster NHK reported on Sept. 2.

The police unit will be based on the southern island of Okinawa, which is 260 miles (420 km) east of the disputed outcrops, which are controlled by Japan and known as the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China.