Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara told reporters on Friday that he conveyed to Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda the provincial government's willingness to let the central government take ownership of a disputed island in the East China Sea.
Addressing a news conference in the capital, Ishihara said that during confidential talks with Noda on August 19, he demanded construction of a landing place and other facilities for fishing boats on the Senkaku islands in return for giving the state all of the money donated by people across Japan for Tokyo's plan to buy the Senkakus.
The islands, known as Senkaku in Japan, Diaoyu in China and Tiaoyutai in Taiwan, are claimed by all the three countries as the region surrounding them is oil-rich and close to key international shipping routes.
The claim over the archipelago, which consists of five islands and three reefs, has long been a cause of friction between Asia's two biggest economies. It is controlled by Japan and forms part of its Okinawa prefecture.
Japanese businessman Kunioki Kurihara owns three of the islands, which is leased to the central government, to "protect" them from Chinese maritime incursions.
A fresh row erupted last month when Noda said that his government was considering buying the islets in response to a similar plan initiated by Ishihara.
In the latest Chinese move to assert its claim on the disputed islands, a group of activists from Hong Kong sailed to Senkaku on August 15, and swam from the boat to Uotsurijima island.
The police in Okinawa prefecture arrested all the 14 activists for violation of the immigration control law.
It was the second incident in five weeks that Chinese vessels trespassing the disputed islands creating tension in China-Japan diplomatic ties. It was said to be the first successful Chinese landing on the territory since 2004.
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