Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie told his Japanese counterpart Toshimi Kitazawa here Monday that China hopes Japan would properly handle sensitive issues in bilateral relations so as to make the relationship back to normal track at an early date.

The Chinese government stands for promoting mutual understanding through dialogue and overcoming differences between the two sides through consultation, said Liang during a conversation with Kitazawa on the sidelines of the 1st ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting Plus (ADMM-Plus).

China-Japan relations have been strained since a collision between two Japanese Coast Guard patrol ships and a Chinese trawler on Sept. 7 in waters off the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea.

The Japanese Coast Guard seized the trawler and detained the fishermen and the captain on Sept. 8.

China, which claims sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands, has maintained the seizure and the detention were illegal.