A boat carrying protestors, which was aiming to land on the disputed Diaoyu Islands, was turned back by the Japanese authorities, according to Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration (CGA).

CGA officials expect the boat carrying protests to reach back on Thursday evening. The chartered fishing boat with a group of Taiwanese activists had left Shenao, New Taipei escorted by four CGA vessels early this morning. The activists were reportedly planning to enshrine a statue of the sea goddess Matsu on the Diaoyu islands.

The islands are controlled by Japan but are claimed by Taiwan and China. The issue has created a lot of nationalist leanings in both the nations. The relationship between the two Asian economic giants has been severely affected due to the sovereignty over the islands as the issue has sparked nationalist feelings in both the nations. Japan has repeatedly turned back protest boats from China, Hong Kong as well as Taiwan.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe criticized the way the authorities in China are handling the Island issue between the countries. Abe was critical of Japan's larger neighbor for wrong handling of the territorial dispute over the islands called Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China.