26/09/2012 (Agence Europe) - EU calls for calm on China-Japan tension. On Tuesday 25 September, following “with concern” developments in the situation in East Asia's maritime areas, with rising tension between China, Japan and Taiwan, the EU called on “all parties concerned” to “seek peaceful and cooperative solutions” in accordance with international law, in particular the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, and to clarify the basis for their claims, said High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton. “The EU urges all parties concerned to take steps to calm the situation”, Ashton added. China, but also Taiwan, both claim ownership of the Japanese archipelago of the Sankaku Islands. For several weeks Beijing, Tokyo and Taipei have been undertaking naval expeditions around this archipelago. (CG/transl.fl)