Japan and China held talks in Beijing on Monday but failed to halt a free fall in ties after a third weekend of demonstrations in China against what many see as Japan's inability to face up to its wartime past. There was little sign of headway after the violent protests, which, along with disputes over territory, a Japanese history textbook and Tokyo's bid for a permanent UN Security Council seat, have dragged relations to their lowest point in decades.
Japanese Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura met State Councillor Tang Jiaxuan, a former foreign minister with broad responsibility for diplomatic issues, who noted that Machimura was visiting "under very difficult circumstances in Sino-Japanese relations", established in 1972.
Tang urged Japan to "seriously review" its actions and take measures to correct them, Xinhua news agency reported.
"I had thought that the Chinese side would express a somewhat more frank feeling over the repeated destruction as well as violence toward Japanese," Machimura told reporters after the meetings.
"I find it unfortunate that they could only deal with the situation by reading from a prepared text," he said. "It is very unfortunate that there is no consideration of the feelings of the Japanese."
But Machimura also said there were positive aspects to his trip.
"There have been several agreements to promote exchanges in various areas between Japan and China," he said.
"If we can successfully co-ordinate the dates, (Chinese) President Hu (Jintao) and (Japanese) Prime Minister (Junichiro) Koizumi may be able to hold a meeting later this week" in Indonesia, when they visit the country for the Asia-Africa summit, the minister said.
Thus far, the two sides have appeared to be talking past each other in discussions on a high-stakes economic partnership that brings $178 billion in annual trade and which Tang has described as "at a crossroads".
The row has already affected financial markets in Tokyo, with the Nikkei share average tumbling 3.8 percent and the yen slipping against the dollar.
Nevertheless, asked if the visit to China was a success, Machimura told Reuters: "Yes, I think so. Yes."
Tang side-stepped a request by Machimura for an apology, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported. Japan's envoy said "one word of apology would have the power to turn Japanese people's feelings in a good direction," Kyodo said.
Tang replied he had heard the issue had been dealt with in earlier talks, Kyodo said.
Some impact is being felt from the row. Japan predicted on Monday that the number of tourists heading for China would fall sharply by 10,000 over the next three months and that Japanese expatriates in the country were growing nervous.
More than 20,000 protesters marched on Japan's consulate in Shanghai on Saturday, breaking windows at Japanese restaurants and pelting the diplomatic compound with rocks and bottles.
The demonstrators were angry over a revised Japanese school textbook they say whitewashes atrocities during Japan's 1931-45 invasion and occupation of much of China. Tensions also edged up after Tokyo announced it had begun procedures to allocate rights for test-drilling in a disputed area of the East China Sea.
A Japanese government spokesman said in Tokyo on Monday it was regrettable that China had not apologised, that Japan would continue to pursue an apology and that violence should not be condoned under any circumstances.
China has described the protests - which have taken place each weekend in April across China - as spontaneous. But they have been criticised for appearing orchestrated and Japanese newspapers have blamed the Chinese government for not doing enough to stop them.
China has denied deliberately allowing the unrest to spiral, but has shown it can halt street protests easily if it wishes.
Even as a violent demonstration raged in Shanghai, authorities headed off protests in Beijing, where thousands of demonstrators had hurled rocks and bottles at the Japanese embassy and ambassador's residence only a week earlier.
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