China urges Japan to 'return to negotiations'

Japan's attempt to "purchase" the Diaoyu Islands will never succeed and it should "return to the track of negotiations" for the settlement of disputes, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tuesday.

"Today is the 81st anniversary of the 'September 18 Incident.'...Nowadays the Chinese government and its 1.3 billion people will not sit by and watch their territorial sovereignty be infringed upon," Spokesman Hong Lei said at a press briefing in Beijing. "Japan's attempt to illegally 'purchase' the islands will never succeed."

The "September 18 Incident" in 1931, which directly preceded Japan's invasion of northeast China, was commemorated on Tuesday with anti-Japan demonstrations springing up across the country, triggered by the Japanese government's so-called "purchase" of the Diaoyu Islands.

Hong said the Japanese government's decision to "purchase" Diaoyu Island and its affiliated islets is a serious violation of China's territorial sovereignty and has triggered strong protests from the Chinese government and the people.

Hong mentioned the Chinese government's solemn representations to Japan and a string of response measures, including the announcement of the basepoints and baselines of the Diaoyu Islands, surveillance fleets' patrol activities around the islands and the submission of the outer limits of continental shelf.

"All these measures have effectively offset the legal consequences of Japan's illegal purchase of the Diaoyu Islands," Hong said.

In regards to the ongoing anti-Japan demonstrations across China, Hong said those demonstrations are "spontaneous" and "are aimed at protesting Japan's illegal 'purchase' of the Diaoyu Islands and condemning Japan's provocation of the victorious outcomes of the World Anti-Fascist War and post-war international order."

"We urge Japan to face China's solemn position, listen to the just appeal of the Chinese people and correct its mistakes," Hong said.

He also urged Japan to take a proper attitude, act appropriately, stop any acts that undermine China's territorial sovereignty, respect the consensus reached between the two countries and return to the track of negotiations for the settlement of disputes.