On June 3, 2021, Director-General of the Department of Boundary and Ocean Affairs of the Foreign Ministry Hong Liang and Director-General of the Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan Takehiro Funakoshi co-chaired the dialogue between the heads of the delegations of China-Japan high-level consultations on maritime affairs via video link.

The two sides made candid and in-depth exchanges of view on maritime affairs and stressed the importance of maintaining the stability and peace of the East China Sea. Both sides agreed to fully implement the consensus reached by the leaders of both countries and the four-point consensus, manage conflicts and differences through dialogues and negotiations, enhance personnel exchanges between maritime departments of the two sides, and promote practical cooperation in the defense, search and rescue, fisheries and other maritime fields, so as to make constructive efforts to maintain stability in the East China Sea. China reiterated its principled stance on the Diaoyu Islands, and urged Japan to earnestly respect China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests. China also expressed its concerns about Japan's disposal of Fukushima wastewater. China hopes that Japan will face up to its responsibility and deal with this problem prudently. The two sides agreed to maintain communication and hold a new round of plenary meeting for high-level consultations on maritime affairs in the second half of this year.