Japan warns China of deteriorating ties over East China Sea dispute

Tokyo

JAPAN warned China on Tuesday that ties were deteriorating over disputed East China Sea islets, and China's envoy in Tokyo reiterated Beijing's stance that the specks of land were its territory and called for talks to resolve the dispute.

The diplomatic tussle comes amid simmering tension as China builds on outposts in the contested South China Sea, including what appear to be reinforced aircraft hangars, according to new satellite images.

Ties between Asia's two largest economies have been strained in recent days since Japan saw a growing number of Chinese coastguard and other government ships sailing near the East China Sea islets, called the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China.

The flurry of Chinese incursions into the waters follows a period of sustained pressure on China over its activities in the South China Sea, and China's criticism of what it sees as Japanese interference in that d…