Chinese warn off Japan over disputed islands

Japan’s chief cabinet secretary Osamu Fujimura said the government would buy the three uninhabited islands in the East China Sea from a private Japanese family it recognises as the owner, and had budgeted £16.3m to do it.

China and Taiwan also claim the islands, which are part of what Japan calls the Senkakus and China the Diaoyu group.

Mr Fujimura said the decision to nationalise the islands was “to maintain the Senkakus peacefully and stably”. The signing of the deal was expected yesterday.

The dispute has long been a flashpoint in Japan-China relations and has been heating up in recent months.

Mr Fujimura repeated that the islands were part of Japan’s territory and should not cause any friction with other countries or regions.

“We certainly do not wish the issue to affect our diplomatic relations with China and it is important to resolve any misunderstanding or miscommunication,” he said.

The formal cabinet approval came after Mr Fujimura announced the decision a day earlier – prompting a swift response from China’s Foreign Ministry, which said Beijing would not “sit back and watch its territorial sovereignty violated”.

“China strongly urges Japan to immediately stop all action to undermine China’s territorial sovereignty and return to a negotiated settlement to the dispute. If Japan insists on going its own way, it will bear all the serious consequences that follow,” the ministry said.

It did not specify the possible consequences.

State-run China Central Television said foreign minister Yang Jiechi summoned the Japanese ambassador to protest at the purchase.

All the major state newspapers in China ran the ministry statement on their front pages, along with comments from premier Wen Jiabao.

“The Diaoyu Islands are an inalienable part of China’s territory, and the Chinese government and its people will absolutely make no concession on issues concerning its sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Mr Wen said.