Japan dispatched diplomats Thursday to negotiate the release of three fishermen detained by Russia after a high-seas shooting killed a fellow crew member, and Tokyo officials said the incident could affect ties with Moscow.

A Russian patrol boat opened fire on their vessel the day before, killing one fisherman, in the latest flare up in a 60-year-old territorial row over a series of islands off the northeast coast of Hokkaido, Japan's northernmost island.

Russia seized the boat, accused the crew of illegal fishing and took the three survivors to Russia for further questioning.

Russia's ITAR-Tass news agency reported that the three were charged with poaching, smuggling and border violations, quoting officials of the Russian Prosecutor's Office. The crew, detained at the Dom Druzhby, or House of Friendship, in Yuzhno-Kurilsk, has been refusing to give evidence to prosecutors, the agency said.

Investigation results will be announced as early as Saturday, Japanese media quoted another Russian news agency, Interfax, as saying.

Japan's Foreign Ministry on Thursday pressed again for their immediate release. It also protested Russia's response to the alleged poaching as too extreme and demanded that the officials responsible for the shooting be punished.

"We don't think the use of force is acceptable in those circumstances," Foreign Ministry spokesman Noriyuki Shikata said. "If there is not good cooperation obtained from the Russian side, this could negatively affect bilateral relations."

Russian officials said the boat ignored orders to stop, was maneuvering dangerously and tried to ram a Russian dinghy. The fisherman was mistakenly killed by a warning shot as he rushed to recover fishing equipment aboard the fishing boat, they said.

A group of Japanese diplomats was dispatched Thursday to Hokkaido to win the release of the detained crew members and their seized boat, and to receive the body, Shikata said. They are expected to go to nearby islands occupied by Russia to negotiate with Russian authorities.

The Foreign Ministry said later in a statement the diplomats included Senior Vice Foreign Minister Yasunori Shiozaki.

Japanese officials have not yet had direct contact with the three detained fishermen. Shikata said it was unclear when they might be released.

"We are strongly demanding Russia hand over the body, the crew members and the ship," Deputy Cabinet Secretary Seiji Suzuki said. "The waters are part of Japanese territory and (the shooting) was unacceptable no matter what the reasons."

The incident happened in waters around four disputed islands - called the Kurils in Russia and the Northern Territories by Japan - that were seized by the Soviet army near World War II's end.

Tokyo demands their return, and the dispute has blocked a treaty formally ending wartime hostilities.

In the latest instance, each country claims the fishing boat was in its own territorial waters at the time of the shooting.

The disputed islands are surrounded by rich fishing waters and are believed to have promising offshore oil and natural gas reserves, as well as gold and silver deposits.

Russian authorities have seized dozens of Japanese boats and injured several fishermen over the years, but this was the first shooting death of a Japanese in the region since October 1956, Coast Guard officials said.

(Chinadaily.com via agencies August 18, 2006)