Japanese censure over Chinese PM islands remarks

The Japanese government Monday criticized Chinese Premier Li Keqiang for saying Japan had stolen islands in the East China Sea and demanding that Japan return them to China. "His remarks completely ignore history and it is absolutely unacceptable," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a news conference. "The Senkaku islands are inherently Japanese territory in light of history and international law," the top government spokesman said. In a speech on Sunday in Germany, Li condemned Japan's control of the disputed islands, which are also claimed by China and Taiwan, insisting that Japan must return all territories "it had stolen" from China. The Japanese-controlled uninhabited rocky islands, known as Diaoyu in China and Tiaoyutai in Taiwan, lie in rich fishing grounds and waters thought to contain large deposits of oil and natural gas. Relations between the world's second and third-largest economies have sharply deteriorated since Tokyo's nationalization of three of the five major islands in September through purchase from a private Japanese owner.