Chinese officials have expressed “regret” regarding the incident on Tuesday, when anti-Japan protestors in Beijing surrounded and slightly damaged the official vehicle of US Ambassador Gary Locke.
The ambassador was unharmed, and the incident lasted only a few minutes, according to those at the scene. The ambassador's vehicle was outside the US Embassy at the time—which is near the Japanese Embassy. It was clearly marked as an American vehicle.
[Victoria Nuland, State Department Spokesperson]:
"There were Chinese security personnel standing in front of the compound, they responded and removed the demonstrators from the scene, which allowed the ambassador's car to move forward."
While security forces quickly cleared the scene, and officials have since promised to investigate the incident… there were no reported arrests.
The demonstrations against Japan occurred on a large scale throughout China, beginning last weekend. They mainly focus on Japan's recent formal purchase of the East China Sea island chain known as Senkaku in Japan, and Diaoyu in China. Both countries claim the territory. The United States, while it has attempted to take a middle position, is caught between its security commitment to Japan and its desire to avoid provoking regional conflicts.
[Victoria Nuland, State Department Spokesperson]:
"We the United States don't take a position on the ultimate sovereignty of the Senkakus but we want to see the Japanese and the Chinese work through it. As you know the secretary had meetings with both Hu Jintao and Prime Minister Noda. We are going to do our diplomacy in private as you can imagine."
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