A diplomat at the Japanese Embassy in Beijing was detained temporarily by Chinese authorities in Beijing on the charges of "acting inappropriately."
Japanese Foreign Ministry has posted on its website that on Monday, a member of the Japanese Embassy in China was temporarily detained by Chinese authorities against his will.
"This case is a clear violation of the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations," said the Japanese ministry.
The Japanese government lodged a protest with China through diplomatic channels, Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters, saying, "We cannot overlook (the incident) and it is absolutely unacceptable."
But the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo refused to accept the protest, releasing a statement Wednesday that the diplomat had been investigated and questioned in accordance with the law after acting inappropriately, without elaborating.
The statement was released after Vice Foreign Minister Takeo Mori summoned Yang Yu, charge d'affaires ad interim of the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo, to the ministry on Tuesday night and demanded that China issue an apology and prevent a recurrence, saying that the incident clearly violated the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, which stipulates the inviolability of diplomats, the ministry said.
According to the Japanese Foreign Ministry, the staffer was detained Monday afternoon while on legitimate official business, despite disclosing his profession to the authorities. The diplomat was released a few hours later after exchanges with Chinese authorities and was not physically harmed, reported The Japan Times.
( With inputs from ANI )
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