Japan's position that there is no territorial dispute over the Senkaku Islands remains unchanged, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said Tuesday.
Asked if the government's position remains unchanged that the sovereignty of the islet group in the East China Sea is not in question, despite Beijing's claims to the contrary, Kishida said at a news conference, "Certainly."
His response is expected to draw criticism from Beijing, just days after Japan and China simultaneously released a statement saying they recognize different views concerning the situation surrounding the Senkakus, called Diaoyu in China, and that they will try to improve soured relations.
There has been a growing view in China that Japan made a major concession on the issue of the islets, seen as strategically important in terms of maritime navigation and natural resources, with the aim of repairing bilateral ties.
Also at the news conference, Kishida cited China's declaration in November 2013 of an air defense identification zone over the East China Sea as one of the different views between the two countries, saying, "Tensions remain over issues like that."
"There is also the issue of drilling undersea resources," he added in an indirect reference to China's development of a gas field in the East China Sea.
Meeting last Saturday, Kishida and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, agreed in Beijing to boost bilateral cooperation by working toward the early resumption of "various" high-level talks.
Two days later, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Xi Jinping held their first meeting ever, in a much-heralded summit before the opening of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.
