Rallies were staged in Beijing and other Chinese cities on Saturday, marking the highly sensitive anniversary of Japan's invasion of Manchuria in 1931, to voice anger over the arrest which has sparked a major diplomatic row.

But Japanese Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara played down the significance of the demonstrations, calling them "sporadic protest activities".

"I think the Chinese government has made considerable efforts to restrain them," he said in a televised talk show. "In this sense, it is imperative for both sides to deal with the matter in a level-headed manner."

He also described the collision as "gu-hatsuteki" -- a Japanese word which could be translated as incidental or unforeseen.

The expression was apparently softer than Tokyo's earlier position that the captain intentionally rammed the Japanese coastguard vessels during a high-seas chase on September 7.

Japanese media reports said the Chinese demonstrations did not end in injuries or damage to property, and were much smaller than the 2005 anti-Japan protests that turned violent in some cities.

"In order to strengthen our strategic, mutually beneficial relations, both should discuss the matter thoroughly," Maehara added.

But Maehara told reporters later that no arrangements were being made for him to hold talks with his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi during his visit to New York this week to attend UN meetings.

The sea incident has sparked the worst tensions between the Asian neighbours in years, with Beijing summoning Tokyo's ambassador five times in a week and scrapping scheduled talks over joint energy exploration in the East China Sea.

The uninhabited islands -- called Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, and also claimed by Taiwan -- lie in an area with rich fishing grounds that is also believed to contain oil and gas deposits.

On Saturday more than 100 demonstrators staged a rally near Japan's embassy in Beijing and a group also stopped outside the Chinese foreign ministry, where they chanted "down with the traitors to the motherland" and urged China to "retake the Diaoyu islands.

Tokyo had warned its citizens in China to remain vigilant to ensure their safety in the event of any backlash over the dispute.

earlier related report
Japan's new FM voices concern over China's defence spending
Tokyo (AFP) Sept 18, 2010 - Japan's new Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara on Friday voiced concern over China's defence spending, speaking hours after he was appointed and amid a tense territorial row with Beijing.

Maehara also said Japan would take "necessary actions" if it became clear that China was extracting gas from a disputed gas field in the East China Sea.

"It is important to further promote strategic mutually beneficial Japan-China relations," Maehara, considered a security affairs specialist and a hawk on China, said at his first press conference in the post.

"But on the other hand, I am concerned about China's build-up of defence spending by more than 10 percent annually for the past 20 years. I would like China to firmly meet its responsibility of explaining this."

Japan, along with the United States and Australia, has voiced concern over China's military spending, which has grown in double digits for many years, and by 7.5 percent most recently, according to figures Beijing released in March.

Maehara assumed the post in a cabinet reshuffle as Japan and its Asian rival are embroiled in their worst diplomatic spat for years over the arrest of a Chinese fishing captain accused of ramming two Japanese coastguard ships.

Beijing said Friday that its activities in the East China Sea gas field also claimed by Japan were entirely legal, as a diplomatic row between the Asian giants escalated.

The disputed Shirakaba or Chunxiao gas field lies in an area where both countries' claimed exclusive economic zones overlap and has long been a bone of contention between the growing competitors for energy and mineral resources.

Maehara also reiterated that the security pact with ally the United States remains the foundation of Japan's diplomacy.

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