BEIJING (Reuters) – Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang told Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa by phone on Thursday that Beijing hopes Japan can stop “right-wing forces” from provoking disputes over contested islands in the East China Sea, according to a statement from the foreign ministry.
Disputed East China Sea islets claimed by both China and Japan have long been a sticking point in bilateral relations.
China calls the islands Diaoyu while Japan calls them Senkaku.
(Reporting by Hong Kong newsroom; Editing by Alex Richardson)
