NAHA, Okinawa Pref. (Kyodo) A Chinese patrol boat was spotted sailing near the disputed Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea on Saturday morning, the Japan Coast Guard said.

The ship, identified as the Yuzheng 202, was seen around 8 a.m. just outside Japanese waters, about 44 km northwest of Kuba Island, one of the islets in the Japan-administered Senkaku group, which is also claimed by China.

Two Japan Coast Guard boats and a plane radioed a warning to the vessel to avoid Japanese territorial waters, its officials said. The vessel left around 9:40 a.m.