'Public diplomacy may help fix China-Japan crisis'

Beijing - China and Japan should give public diplomacy a chance rather than rely only on the official channels to help resolve their conflict over the ownership of Diaoyu Islands, Chinese scholars say.

"In the face of the damage wrought by radical Japanese politicians, we can only resort to the power of friendship to eliminate difficulties," Feng Zhaokui, a Japanese studies expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said.

"Even in this bleak situation, goodwill can make a difference," China Daily Friday quoted him as saying.

This year should have been a great opportunity to deepen links, said Jia Qinglin, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

On Sunday, Jia met with the heads of major Japan-China friendship groups and Japanese politicians who want to improve ties. The meeting was seen as a positive gesture to improve sharply deteriorating ties.

China has meanwhile informed Japan it will delay a reception scheduled next Thursday to mark the 40th anniversary of normalized ties.

Japan's "nationalization" of part of the islands, regardless of China's repeated representations, have "pushed China-Japan ties to the grim situation", Jia said.

"Japan should fully recognize the seriousness of the situation, face up to the problems over the islands and correct their errors as soon as possible to avoid causing greater damage to relations," he added