As some media reports that China National Offshore Oil Corporation is planning to drill into seven new gas fields in the sea at the heart of heightened tensions between Tokyo and Beijing, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said on July 18^th in a press conference: "Japan will not accept China's unilateral tapping of gas fields in the East China Sea."

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Yoshihide Suga emphasizes that Japan is still trying to confirm if the report is true. "If the information is true, Japanese government will lodge solemn representations to Chinese government. We will never accept development of gas fields in a unilateral manner." Yoshihide Suga said.

Earlier this month, Yoshihide Suga have announced that China is suspected to be developing gas fields near disputed waters of China and Japan. Japan's Foreign Ministry has made a protest against the situation to Cheng Yonghua, the Chinese Ambassador to Japan.

Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Hua Chunying responded to the protest. She said: "We hope that the Japanese side can adopt a more proper attitude and make efforts to improve political trust and enhance regional peace and stability. China is developing gas fields in China's own territorial seas. So we won't accept Japan's protest." A Chinese law expert Xing Guangmei says China will not agree on the so-called "disputed median line", which was raised by Japan to confuse the concepts.

So far, China and Japan still disagree on where the maritime boundary between them lies in the East China Sea. And Chinese Foreign Ministry has lodged solemn declarations to Japanese side for many times that China will not accept the concept of "median line" in East China Sea. The "median line" is just Japan's unilateral proposal. In addition, China won't accept the joined development in China's territorial seas on a renunciation of "median line".