Tokyo must come back 'from the brink'

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Beijing on Wednesday urged Tokyo to immediately cancel its "purchase" of the Diaoyu Islands as senior diplomats from both countries met.

"China will never acknowledge Japan's illegal grab and so-called actual control of the Diaoyu Islands," Luo Zhaohui, director of the Foreign Ministry's department of Asian affairs, told Shinsuke Sugiyama, director-general of the Asian and Oceania Affairs Bureau of the Japanese Foreign Ministry, during their meeting in Beijing.

Japanese Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura said on Wednesday that the purchase of the islands from "private owners" was completed on Tuesday, a move that sparked protests and countermeasures from Beijing.

Japanese Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba rejected the demand from China on Wednesday and said that Tokyo would "in no way reconsider" its move, Kyodo News Agency said.

Japan illegally grabbed the Diaoyu Islands and affiliated islets, that belong to China, at the end of the First Sino-Japanese War of 1894-95.

Beijing urged Tokyo to "rein in from the brink of the precipice", and get on track toward a resolution through dialogue and negotiation, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said on Wednesday. Chinese government vessels will continue regular patrols in waters administered by China, Hong told reporters.

Liu Jiangyong, an expert on Japanese studies, said Japan's farcical "purchase" is aimed at extending its reach and projecting an image of so-called actual control over the islands in a bid to mislead the international community that it "owns" the islands.

The State Oceanic Administration on Wednesday released, on its website, a new regulation to protect territorial waters, a move to "ensure the country's maritime interests".

More Chinese consumers and businesses are boycotting Japanese products and brands.

According to data provided by leading Chinese shopping website Taobao.com, the number of consumers searching for Sony products in the online shop decreased by 15.1 percent within seven days, with a 3.8 percent drop for Panasonic and a 2.3 percent decline for Canon.

Meanwhile, Chinese tourists and officials are canceling tours to Japan.

About the broadcaster:

Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.