Japan PM Yoshihiko Noda says his government is in final negotiations to bring the Senkaku islands under public ownership. <\/p>\n
STORY HIGHLIGHTS <\/p>\n
Tokyo (CNN) -- The Japanese government is in the final stages of negotiations to bring a hotly disputed set of small islands in the East China Sea under public ownership, Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said Friday, stressing his country's claims of sovereignty. <\/p>\n
The islands are at the heart of a bitter diplomatic argument between Japan and China that has resulted in occasionally violent acts of public protest. The uninhabited islands, known in Japan as Senkaku and in China as Diaoyu, are privately owned by a Japanese family. <\/p>\n
A public initiative begun in April by the outspoken governor of Tokyo, Shintaro Ishihara, to raise money to acquire the islands for the city authorities has set off a new cycle of tensions between Japan and China over which country has sovereignty over them. <\/p>\n
China talks tough in Japan island dispute <\/p>\n
Reports in the Japanese news media this week suggested the Japanese authorities had agreed a 2.05-billion-yen ($26.1-million) deal to buy the islands from the private owners. <\/p>\n
In an interview with CNN on Friday, Noda declined to discuss the size of the sum likely to be paid for the islands, which are also claimed by Taiwan, because of the sensitivity of the matter. <\/p>\n
But he said the talks were in their \"final stages,\" and he remained unequivocal about which country the islands belong to. <\/p>\n
\"The Senkaku Islands are an inherent part of Japanese territory, historically as well as under international law, so there's no territorial claim issue between the two countries,\" he said. \"Right now, it is the ownership issue -- whether the individual owns these islands, or the Tokyo metropolitan government or the state. And I think we have to clearly and solidly explain these stances to the Chinese side.\" <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Japan in final stages of talks to buy disputed islands, prime minister says<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Japan PM Yoshihiko Noda says his government is in final negotiations to bring the Senkaku islands under public ownership. STORY HIGHLIGHTS Tokyo (CNN) -- The Japanese government is in the final stages of negotiations to bring a hotly disputed set of small islands in the East China Sea under public ownership, Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said Friday, stressing his country's claims of sovereignty. The islands are at the heart of a bitter diplomatic argument between Japan and China that has resulted in occasionally violent acts of public protest Continue reading