BEIJING - China requires Japan to refrain from taking any action that could endanger the safety of life and property of Chinese citizens who are heading to the Diaoyu Island, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Qin Gang said in a press statement Wednesday.

China is paying close attention to the developments of relevant issues, Qin said in the statement.

A vessel carrying 14 activists seeking to assert Chinese sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands, left Hong Kong on Sunday and entered waters off Taiwan on Tuesday.

The vessel is scheduled to replenish supplies in Taiwan and arrive at waters off the Diaoyu Islands on Wednesday.

Awaiting them will be Japan's Coast Guard, which Japan's Fuji TV said is prepared for the potential confrontation.

Japan's Sankei Shimbun reported on Monday that Japan's Maritime Self Defense Force will send warships if the Coast Guard fails to stop the Hong Kong activists from stepping on the islands.