China holds an open attitude toward a new round of China-Japan consultation over the East China Sea issue, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said Thursday.

China and Japan do have common ground on the issue, with both agreeing to the general direction of joint development of the sea and the proper resolution of relevant questions through dialogue and consultation, Jiang said.

However, the two sides have not fixed a date for further consultation, she said.

In Cebu of the Philippines in early January, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expressed their will to speed up the consultation process about the East China Sea issue.

So far, six rounds of consultation have been convened between China and Japan. At the sixth round, the two sides agreed to maintain the consultation process in the future.

Source: Xinhua