There was no agreement to shelve the Senkaku issue between Japan and China

According to an article of Sankei news on 2013.6.29 08:24, there was no agreement to shelve the Senkaku (Japanese territory) issue between former Japanese Foreign Minister Sonoda Sunao and former Chinese Vice Prime Minister Deng Xiaoping in the conferences held in 1978. 

The Chinese government said that there was agreement in the conference on Normalization of Diplomatic Relations on September 27^th in 1972 between former Prime Minister Tanaka Kakuei of Japan and former Prime Minister Zhou Enlai of China. 

Kuriyama Takakazu, former head of treaty negotiation of the Foreign Ministry, who accompanied the Japanese delegate led by former Prime Minister Tanaka Kakuei in 1972, points out that there was an implicit understanding on shelving the issue between the two leaders. He said to Sankei Shimbun, “There was an implicit understanding whereas China says that there was agreement, but it is an exaggerated statement by China”. 

Tajima Takashi, former head of Chinese Division of the Foreign Ministry of Japan, responded to an interview by Sankei Shimbun on June 28^th, saying " To shelve the Senkaku issue was a unilateral wish of China, and there was no agreement on it".  He added, “In the conference between Tanaka and Zhou, there was even no implicit understanding on shelving the issue”.