China and Japan will hold talks next
Monday in Beijing on the dispute over the East China Sea, Chinese foreign
ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said Tuesday.
Foreign Ministry
Spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue presides over a regular news briefing in Beijing
October 19, 2004. Zhang said China and Japan will hold talks on disputes
over the East China Sea next week.
[fmprc.gov.cn] |
China and Japan will hold
talks next Monday in Beijing on the dispute over the East China Sea, Chinese
foreign ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said Tuesday.
Zhang revealed the news at a regular
news briefing in Beijing, saying that Cui Tiankai, director-general of the
Foreign Ministry's Asian Affairs Department, will represent China, with Mitoji
Yabunaka, head of the Japanese Foreign Ministry's Asian and Oceanian Affairs
Bureau, representing Japan.
The two sides will exchange opinions
on questions arising from the delimitation and exploration of natural resources
in the East China Sea.
There are disputes over the
demarcation of the East China Sea, however, China is willing to look for an
appropriate settlement through peaceful dialogue, Zhang added.
In order to further safeguard and
promote friendship with Japan, China proposed consultations be held to resolve
these issues, Zhang said.
China's newly appointed ambassador to
Japan, Wang Yi, said in his first press conference in Tokyo on Monday that
China's oil and gas exploration in the East China Sea is being carried out in
China's indisputable coastal waters and is a matter within the scope of China's
sovereignty.
He said both China and Japan have a
right to claim 200 sea miles of water according to international law. However,
the width of the East China Sea is less than 400 sea miles and the claims of the
two sides overlapped and raised disputes.
He said the two countries have to
consider various factors and look for a mutually acceptable settlement.
Visit to the shrine
Zhang also urged Japanese leaders
Tuesday to be considerate of Sino-Japan relations and refrain from sending any
signals or partaking in any acts that will hurt the feelings of the Chinese
people.
Zhang's remarks followed a visit by
79 lawmakers from Japan's ruling and opposition parties, including Liberal
Democratic Party Secretary General Tsutomu Takebe, to the Yasukuni Shrine
Tuesday.
The shrine honours war dead,
including Class A war criminals of World War II.
"China hoped Japan's leaders could
handle the matter in a more delicate way and refrain from any acts that will
hurt the feelings of the Chinese people as this will affect the political
foundations of the further development of our relations," she said.
Wang Yi said at his press conference
that the Yasukuni Shrine question has gone beyond the realm of Japanese domestic
affairs and is a serious diplomatic issue that touches on the demarcation of
right and wrong and international justice.
Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro
Koizumi has visited the shrine four times since becoming Japan's leader in April
2001 and said he would continue to do so.
His repeated visits have greatly
soured Japan's relations with China and neighbouring
countries.
