BEIJING—China called on Russia to explain what it called an "alleged attack" on a Chinese fishing vessel this week, as well as the fate of a sailor missing off Russia's east coast, in the latest bout of tension between Moscow and Beijing.
Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Cheng Guoping expressed "strong dissatisfaction" with Russia Thursday over the incident, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency. The report said that Russian forces opened fire on the Chinese boat and that one sailor was missing.
"China demands Russia thoroughly investigate the incident and inform China of the results in a timely manner," Mr. Cheng said, according to Xinhua, which added that he summoned an unidentified Russian diplomat to hear the demand.
Chinese officials haven't responded to requests to comment, and attempts to contact the Chinese consulate in the eastern Russian city of Vladivostok were unsuccessful.
Chinese state-run media said this week that two Chinese fishing vessels were seized by Russia, one on Sunday and one on Monday, citing the Chinese consulate in Vladivostok. One ship carried 19 fishermen and the other 17, according to the reports. The status of the second vessel wasn't clear.
According to Russia's Border Guard Service, the vessel captured on Monday was inside the country's exclusive economic zone, tried to ram a Russian vessel, and then resisted when Russian personnel tried to board. The ship was fishing for squid, according to both sides, with the Russian reports saying its hold was filled with an unauthorized squid haul.
In a similar episode in 2009, China said that a Russian warship fired on a Chinese cargo vessel, and that seven crew members were missing. Russian authorities had said the boat didn't stop despite warning shots.
Though they are traditional rivals, China and Russia are in accord on a number of major global issues, including opposition to efforts at the United Nations Security Council to enact tougher measures against Syria and Iran. But they have struggled to reach agreements on natural-gas exports and are among the players jockeying for power in the resource-rich Central Asia region.
Mr. Cheng said Russia should make sure that the detained sailors are safe, that their legitimate rights are guaranteed and that they are provided with humanitarian treatment, according to Xinhua.
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