Beijing urges Tokyo not to ‘complicate the situation’ in East China Sea

Japanese official raised concerns over ‘increasing military activities’ in talks with Chinese counterpart

The two nations have a long-running territorial dispute over a group of uninhabited islands

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Relations between the neighbours have been plagued for years by the territorial dispute over a group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea. Photo: Kyodo

Published: 5:18pm, 11 Nov 2021Updated: 5:18pm, 11 Nov 2021

Japan has raised concerns over Chinese military activities in the disputed East China Sea in talks on Wednesday, while Beijing urged Tokyo not to do anything to complicate the situation.

In the meeting, Hong Liang, director general of the boundary and ocean affairs department at the Chinese foreign ministry, said Japan should respect China’s sovereignty in the East China Sea.

He made the remarks during a videoconference with his counterpart Takehiro Funakoshi, head of the Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau at Japan’s foreign ministry.

The two neighbours have a long-running territorial dispute over a group of Japanese-controlled uninhabited islands that are known as the Diaoyus in China and the Senkakus in Japan.

“China reiterates its solemn position on the Diaoyu Islands and the East China Sea and urges Japan to respect China’s sovereignty and security concerns and refrain from taking actions that may complicate the situation,” Hong said, according to the Chinese foreign ministry. The statement said the two officials had a “candid and in-depth exchange of views” on managing their dispute.

Hong Liang said Japan should “refrain from taking any actions that may complicate the situation”. Photo: Handout

Funakoshi voiced concern over China’s “increasing military activities” and called for self-restraint on Beijing’s part, according to Japan’s foreign ministry. It said he also raised the issue of repeated entry into Japanese waters by Chinese vessels near the Diaoyus.