Japanese officials protested Monday the port call of a U.S. nuclear submarine in Okinawa and the U.S. embassy in Tokyo immediately apologized because it was late in notifying authorities.

The State Department said the embassy issued an apology for not complying with protocol to notify Tokyo one day before a nuclear submarine arrives. The apology followed the Japanese foreign ministry's protest on the visit of the USS Providence at the White Beach Naval Facility in southern Okinawa prefecture.

The submarine arrived at 10 a.m. and stayed at the port until noon.

The U.S. embassy claimed a miscommunication caused the delay in notifying Tokyo that the USS Providence would stop in Okinawa.