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TOKYO — Japanese lawmakers pushing for a tougher stance in adispute with China over several uninhabited islands said Monday thecountry should allow a team of experts to travel there to studydevelopment possibilities and environmental issues. The proposal is the latest move by some influential Japanese topush their country's claims to the islands, which are calledSenkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu in Chinese. If carried out, it wouldlikely heighten tensions with Beijing. The idea was debated a day after an unofficial "fishing" trip towaters off the islands by a half-dozen national lawmakers. Chinaclaims the islands are part of its sovereign territory. Taiwan alsoclaims the islands. China's Foreign Ministry protested the lawmakers' visit, calling itan "illegal and ineffective" action. "Chinese diplomats have already talked to Japanese officials andwarned them not to carry on with farces like that," spokesman LiuWeimin said at a daily media briefing in Beijing. No decision was made at Monday's parliamentary hearing, but severalspeakers expressed support for an onsite study. "We need to promote the development of the islands and thepossibility of having people living there," Taro Kimura, aconservative lawmaker, told the hearing. "I support governmentapproval for these missions." Surrounded by rich fishing grounds, the islands are a flash pointin diplomatic relations between Japan and China. The rivalry heated up again in April, when Tokyo's influential andoutspoken governor, Shintaro Ishihara, announced a plan to usepublic funds to buy several of the isles from a private Japanesecitizen whom Japan says has legal ownership. China doesn't recognize that deed, and Ishihara has acknowledgedthe move is largely intended to put pressure on the nationalgovernment to play a bigger role in the islands' administration. He told the hearing Monday that Tokyo has already received morethan 1 billion yen ($12 million) in donations for the purchase,which is expected to cost between 2 and 3 billion yen. Though Ishihara is not a member of parliament, he is a nationallyrecognized figure and his position is shared by a growingcontingent of lawmakers who are concerned that China has in recentyears strengthened its own claims to territories throughout theEast and South China Seas. ___ Associated Press writer Charles Hutzler in Beijing contributed tothis report. The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as China Bubble Wrap Rolls , Poly Mailer, and more. For more , please visit Metallic Bubble Mailer today!
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