Authorities in Japan confirmed Wednesday they arrested a Japanese army soldier on suspicion of trespass, a day after China protested over an alleged break-in at the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo. The case, the latest point of friction in an escalating spat between Japan and China, surfaced Tuesday after Beijing protested to Tokyo.

An individual who claimed to be a Japan Self-Defence Forces officer scaled the wall and forced his way into the embassy compound on Tuesday morning, Lin Jian, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, said in a news conference in Beijing.