Japan is trying to cover up Diaoyu's theft: official

Tensions surrounding the Diaoyu Islands are being stirred up single-handedly by Japan in an attempt to rewrite Japan's inglorious history of illegally stealing Chinese territory, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Yucheng said on Sept 14.

Le, addressing a seminar on the Diaoyu Islands in Beijing, said that the convoys of China's maritime surveillance vessels that arrived in the waters off the Diaoyu Islands on Sept 14 is another strong measure that China is taking to safeguard territorial sovereignty.

Tokyo is denying the historical fact that the islands belong to China, and there is a "sinister tendency inside Japan that is taking Japan and China-Japan relations down an extremely dangerous road", Le said at the seminar.

On Sept 12, Tokyo said that the "purchase" of the Diaoyu Islands from "private owners" had been completed a day earlier, a move that has sparked protests and countermeasures from Beijing.

"China will in no way recognize Japan's illegal occupation of, and the so-called actual control over, the Diaoyu Islands," Le said.

Le warned that the will and resolve of the Chinese government and people to uphold China's territorial sovereignty are "firm and will not be shaken by any force".

On Sept 14, the convoys of China's maritime surveillance vessels arrived in the waters off the islands on a law enforcement patrol mission to demonstrate sovereignty.

"This is another strong measure that we take to safeguard our territorial sovereignty," Le said.

China-Japan ties have been strained since Shintaro Ishihara, the right-wing Tokyo governor, unveiled plans to "buy" the islands in April.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda announced a plan in July to "nationalize" the islands, a move that prompted immediate protests from Beijing. The diplomatic standoff has led to a series of canceled visits and exchanges.

Le said that the Japanese government has "come out from behind the curtain" to execute the plan to "purchase" the Diaoyu Islands, which is "by no means an isolated event".

Japan has dished out numerous fallacies on the "purchase" in an attempt to cover up the truth and mislead public opinion, Le said.

"What Japan is doing is like someone grabbing a bicycle from his neighbor. No matter who rides that bicycle, that person or his son, it does not change the fact that the bicycle does not belong to him," he said.