In China Daily, Prof Gong Jianhua, a maritime affairs specialist at Guangdong Ocean University, welcomes the new coast guard, but says China should promote joint development with neighbours in the South China Sea on the basis of a China-Asean free trade zone to ease "anxiety and suspicion".

BBC: China media: Railways ministry

Another irritant to regional ties arose Tuesday morning when eight Chinese patrol ships sailed within the territorial waters around the East China Sea islands, said a Japanese Coast Guard official.

WSJ: Japan War-Shrine Visits Rile Neighbors

Last fall relations between Beijing and Tokyo reached their worst point in years after Japan detained the Chinese captain of a fishing boat that had collided with Japanese Coast Guard vessels in a disputed stretch of the East China Sea.

FORBES: The Earthquake and East Asia's Balance of Power

China recently moved maritime patrol boats into waters near the Senkakus, prompting calls by Japanese coast guard ships for the vessels to leave.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Center For Security Policy

Mr. Cheng rejected Tokyo's protest, and instead complained about Japanese Coast Guard ships operating in what Beijing considers its territorial waters, according to Xinhua, China's state-run news agency.

WSJ: China, Japan Island Spat Resurfaces