'To protect our fishing resources, and given the (Chinese) boat's refusal to be boarded, warning shots were fired,' it said.

'The offending vessel carried out manoeuvres to collide with the coast guard patrol... Thus the order was given to fire on different sections of the vessel, damaging it'.

All 32 Chinese sailors were saved, four were picked up by the Argentines and 28 more were rescued by a nearby Chinese vessel.

The boat's captain was due to be handed over to police and appear before a judge.

In Beijing, Lu Kang, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, posted a statement on the ministry's website saying the boat had been fishing in Argentine waters and was chased for several hours before Argentine naval fire holed the vessel.

The statement did not directly address the question of whether the boat was fishing illegally or tried to ram the Argentine navy vessel.

'The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Chinese Embassy to Argentina have lodged urgent representations with Argentina, expressing serious concern, urging Argentina to carry out a full investigation immediately and to inform China of the details, to protect the safety and lawful rights of Chinese sailors, and to take effective measures to avoid similar incidents,' the statement said.  

Poaching of fish is a perennial problem in the Atlantic and Southern Ocean, and has sometimes seen law enforcement agencies pursue violators for weeks on end at sea, but it is highly unusual for such incidents to end with a vessel being sent to the sea floor.

The sinking comes as China expands its long-distance fishing fleet to meet surging demand for seafood.

China is a key export market for Argentinian agriculture and raw materials, and President Xi Jinping visited in 2014, when he said the two countries' relationship was poised to reach unprecedented 'new horizons'.

Illegal fishing is common in the waters of the South Atlantic, reportedly often involving Chinese or Russian vessels.

China is the world's largest market for seafood and has the biggest overseas fishing fleet.

It has grown rapidly in recent decades to reach more than 2,460 vessels, which do most of their fishing off west Africa, according to research at Nanyang Technological University.

Last year Greenpeace said that at least 74 fishing vessels owned and operated by four Chinese distant water fishing companies had been exposed for fishing illegally off west Africa.

Beijing's neighbours Seoul and Hanoi often accuse Chinese vessels of illegally entering their waters.

Argentina in 2012 said it captured two Chinese fishing vessels illegally fishing for squid in its exclusive economic zone, after firing warning shots.

At the time local reports said illegal Chinese fishing was often facilitated by corrupt officials within the Argentine government and coast guard.

Source :AFP