MSA and MSDF form action plan against rogue ships

The nation's two maritime authorities agreed on a joint action plan on Monday to deal with rogue vessels that violate Japanese waters. The joint plan, in the form of a manual, was drawn up as part of a review of a chase in the Sea of Japan in March in which Maritime Safety Agency patrol boats and Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyers failed to capture two unidentified vessels that fled to North Korea after violating Japanese territorial waters. The new manual stipulates that the MSA and the MSDF should exchange relevant information once an unidentified ship is spotted by either authority, according to the Defense Agency. While the MSA will primarily deal with the vessel according to current domestic laws, the director general of the Defense Agency will order the dispatch of the MSDF once both agencies feel the situation has gone beyond the capability of the MSA alone, the agency said.