BEIJING - Chinese marine surveillance authorities on Friday countered claims in Japanese media that their job openings had proved unattractive to applicants in China's civil servant recruitment.

The statement from China Marine Surveillance (CMS) corrected the reports' assertion that some posts had attracted no applications, quashing their suggestion that the situation had implications for Chinese people's patriotism.

It came after Japanese media reports that several positions on CMS ships operating in the East China Sea branch of the State Oceanic Administration received no applicants in this year's civil servant examination sign-up.

The reports claimed this indicates Chinese youth are keen on patriotic outcries but few are willing to take practical action.

According to the statement, however, all of the 14 ship crew positions of the East China Sea branch opened in this year's recruitment have attracted applications, but some of the applicants have been disqualified in the preliminary review as they lacked proper professional backgrounds.

Some positions of senior crew members on enforcement vessels have strict requirements for the applicants' professional competencies, with many new graduates not having the necessary qualifications as marine navigators or engineers, the statement said.

So there are just no eligible candidates for a few positions, and the reports of "no applicants" are inaccurate, CMS said.

According to the statement, 7,453 people applied for a total of 95 vacancies in all CMS agencies, and 4,235 of them passed the qualification review.

"In fact, the competition for some positions is quite fierce," the statement said, noting that a ship engineer position from the East China Sea branch with three vacancies has 48 eligible candidates.

Moreover, about 557 eligible applicants majoring in Japanese language will compete for a single vacancy within a law enforcement team of the same branch, the statement added.

Relations between China and Japan soured after Japan announced its "purchase" of part of the Diaoyu Islands in September.

Rallies and protests were staged by Chinese people both in Chinese cities and overseas to oppose Japan's move.