China, Japan agree to talks on dispute

China and Japan will enter into formal talks with the aim of easing tensions in a territorial dispute in the East China Sea, Bloomberg reported. Japan’s foreign ministry said late last week that vice ministers from both countries would meet to discuss the dispute over the Senkaku islands, known as the Diaoyu in China, but did not specify a date. Japanese president Yoshihiko Noda also struck a more conciliatory tone in an interview last week. “These are the second- and third-largest economies in the world and our interdependence is deepening,” he said. “If our ties cool, particularly economic ones, then it isn’t a question of one or the other country suffering. Both countries lose out.” Japan’s purchase of the islands, also claimed by China, from their private Japanese owner last month has sparked widespread hostility against Japan in the mainland, hurting trade in autos, tourism and other sectors.