New Japanese foreign minister, Yoshimasa Hayashi, said on Saturday that Antony Blinken, the U.S. Secretary of State, assured him in a phone call of the U.S' unwavering commitment towards defending Japan, including the southern islets claimed by China, according to a report by NDTV.

Japan's relations with China have been strained owing to a territorial dispute over a group of Japanese-ruled islands in the East China Sea, called the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, along with the legacy of Japan's military aggression in the past.

"Secretary Blinken stated that U.S. commitment to defending Japan, including the application of Article 5 of the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty for the Senkaku islands, was unwavering," the Japanese foreign minister told reporters.

The article 5 of the treaty states that each party recognises an armed attack on the Japan administered territories would be dangerous to its safety and peace, and it would act to meet the common danger.

Cross-strait tensions have been escalating in recent months, with Taiwan for a year or more complaining of repeated air force missions by China near the island that the Chinese claims as its own.

Blinken and Hayashi strongly opposed the unilateral attempts of China to change the status quo in the East and South China Seas, and agreed on close cooperation between the two countries in responding to issues regarding China, a written statement by the Japanese Foreign Ministry said.

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