The Battle of Amami-Ōshima, also known as the Spy Ship Incident in the Southwest Sea of Kyūshū (九州南西海域工作船事件, kyūshū-nansei-kaiiki-kōsakusen-jiken), was a six-hour confrontation between the Japan Coast Guard and an armed North Korean vessel on 22 December 2001, taking place near the island of Amami Ōshima, in the East China Sea. The encounter ended in the sinking of the North Korean vessel, which the Japanese authorities later announced was determined to have been a spy craft. The encounter took place outside Japanese territorial waters, but within the exclusive economic zone, an area extending 200 nautical miles (370 km; 230 mi) from Japanese land, within which Japan can claim exclusive rights to fishing and mineral resources.