China, Japan acknowledge "different positions" on disputed islands

BEIJING - China and Japan agreed on Friday that "different positions exist" on a chain of disputed islands in the East China Sea, China's Foreign Ministry said on Friday.

Chinese State Councillor Yang Jiechi, the country's top diplomat, met with visiting National Security Advisor of Japan Shotaro Yachi on Friday.

The dispute over control of the islands, known to China as the Diaoyu and in Japan as the Senkaku, has seriously strained ties between Asia's two largest economies.

The two countries also agreed to set up crisis management mechanisms to prevent the situation from worsening further.

China and Japan will slowly resume political, diplomatic and security dialogue through multilateral and bilateral channels, the Foreign Ministry said.