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Special: China-Japan relations

China's Shanghai Maritime Court has ordered the release of one of the vessels of Japanese shipping firm Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd, which was seized over an alleged payment dispute dating back to World War II, the Supreme Court of China said on its Sina Weibo.

The court delivered its verdict on Thursday morning.

The release came after the Japanese shipping firm paid about $39 million to the Chinese court towards securing the release of the ship.

Mitsui had paid the money, about 4 billion yen, in compensation and interest to the Chinese court. The ship, the "Baosteel Emotion," a 226,434 deadweight-ton ore carrier, was seized on Saturday by the Chinese court over Mitsui's alleged failure to pay compensation stemming from a wartime contractual obligation.