China and Japan agreed yesterday to hold a new round of talks
on the East China Sea gas issue at an early date, according to an
official from the Japanese Embassy in Beijing.
The agreement came after informal talks at a working level held
yesterday morning between Cui Tiankai, head of the Foreign
Ministry's Asian Affairs Department and Kenichiro Sasae, head of
the Japanese Foreign Ministry's Asia and Oceania Affairs Bureau,
the Japanese official said.
"Both sides agreed that the fourth round of negotiations will be
held as soon as possible, perhaps in late January or early
February, around China's
Spring Festival holiday," he said.
"The Chinese officials said they were studying the issue and
planned to present a new plan at the next meeting," he added.
Nobuyori Kodaira, director-general of Japan's Natural Resources and
Energy Agency, also took part in the talks, according to the
official.
The two sides also reviewed the current bilateral ties and other
issues, expressing their will to improve current chilly relations,
according to the official.
China and Japan have held three rounds of consultations on the East
China Sea issue since October 2004. The third round was held from
September 30 to October 1 last year in Tokyo, during which the two
sides exchanged views on a demarcation of the East China Sea and
the possibility of launching joint sea resource development
projects.
The second round was held in Beijing in May 2005. The two parties
negotiated the demarcation of the continental shelf of the East
China Sea and promoting the joint development of marine resources
in the area.
The energy dispute between China and Japan was caused by an
unsettled demarcation line in the sea where the two countries'
200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zones overlap.
Both sides had agreed in the last round in Tokyo to meet again in
October, but negotiations were stalled after Japanese Prime
Minister Junichiro Koizumi's October 17 visit to the Yasukuni
Shrine, which honors Japanese war dead, including Class-A war
criminals from the Second World War.
(Xinhua News Agency January 10, 2006)