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October 30, 2010

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China accuses Japan as leaders' talks called off

China accused Japan yesterday of ruining the atmosphere for the leaders of the two sides to conduct talks during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Hanoi.

Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Hu Zhengyue said the Japanese had violated China's sovereignty and territorial integrity through statements to the media during the summit meetings between ASEAN nations and its partners.

Hu said Japan also made untrue statements about the content of a meeting between Chinese and Japanese foreign ministers held earlier in the day in Haino.

The Japanese should take full responsibility for any consequence to arise, Hu said.

The diplomatic authority of Japan, with other nations, tried to create noises on the issue of the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea in the lead-up to the summits between ASEAN and its partners.

On top of that, during the summits, the Japanese side frequently made use of media outlets to make statements and comments that violated the sovereignty and territorial integrity of China, Hu said.

When meeting with his Japanese counterpart Seiji Maehara, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi set forth China's principled position on the issue concerning the Diaoyu Islands, stressing that the Diaoyu Islands have been an integral part of Chinese territory since ancient times, Hu said.

China refuted a report that said it agreed to resume negotiations with Japan on the exploration of oil and gas fields in East China Sea during the meeting between the two countries' foreign ministers.

A spokesman from the Chinese delegation said the report was totally inconsistent with the facts.

In a half-hour meeting between Yang and Maehara yesterday morning, Yang urged the Japanese side to go in the same direction as the Chinese side and create a sound atmosphere. Yang said this would provide the conditions for the two sides to implement the principles concerning the East China Sea.

Ties between China and Japan deteriorated last month with the detention of a Chinese fishing boat captain by the Japanese coast guard after their boats collided near Diaoyu Islands.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan did not hold a one-on-one meeting intended to mend ties at the summit in Hanoi yesterday.

The Japanese Foreign Ministry said they were due to meet last night but Hu later said that was untrue.

"Their actions have damaged the atmosphere," Hu told reporters in Hanoi.

Wen and Kan appeared stiff and avoided eye contact when they lined up for photographs with other leaders.

Maehara earlier told reporters an hour-long meeting with Yang was held in a "very good atmosphere, in a calm and in a forward-looking manner."

Maehara also said he expressed Japan's concern about China's policy on rare earths, and that Yang said China would not use the minerals as bargaining tools.

A Japanese official later quoted Wen as saying China wanted to continue providing rare earth minerals to the world, and to do so in a sustainable way that would not violate World Trade Organization rules.

"Premier Wen commented that China has seen over-development for a long time and that China wants to continue providing rare earth to the world," the official said.

 

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