Rejecting an accusation that China has broken an agreement on the oil fields in the East China Sea, the Foreign Ministry Tuesday urged Japan not to distort the accord.
"Our position is unchanged. We hope Japan does not misinterpret the principle consensus of the two countries," Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang told reporters at a regular press briefing.
Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun said on Sunday that China was conducting unilateral development of the Tianwaitian oil and gas field, which, it claimed, is located in the area that Beijing and Tokyo agreed to jointly develop in a breakthrough deal reached last June.hxen.com
The Foreign Ministry responded immediately, saying the report is "a misinterpretation of the principle consensus".
"The Tianwaitian oil and gas field is located in undisputed territorial waters under the jurisdiction of China, thus China’s exploration of the field is within our inherent sovereign rights," Qin said in a press release on Sunday.
In the consensus, the two sides agreed to discuss the joint development in "other parts of the East China Sea", not including China’s undisputed territorial waters, he said.
But Tokyo continued attacking Beijing over the issue.
Japan’s Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone said on Monday that Tokyo had lodged its formal protest with China over the "regrettable" issue.
Qin told reporters that China and Japan were maintaining contact over the issue.
The dispute came days ahead of the 9th strategic dialogue between the two nations, scheduled for Friday in Tokyo.
Qin announced on Monday Deputy Foreign Minister Wang Guangya and Japanese Deputy Foreign Minister Mitoji Yabunaka would lead delegations to attend the meeting focusing on "bilateral ties and other international and regional issues".
He did not reveal whether the dispute over Tianwaitian will be touched, but analysts have said it is "quite possible".
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