TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s ruling party urged Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government on Wednesday to consider seeking international arbitration over Beijing’s drilling activities in the disputed East China Sea, mirroring similar action by the Philippines.

Sino-Japanese ties have long been plagued by conflicting claims over a group of uninhabited East China Sea islets. Last year, Japan called on China to halt construction of oil-and-gas exploration platforms in the East China Sea.

At the time, Tokyo accused Beijing of unilateral development despite a 2008 agreement to maintain cooperation on resources development in the area, where no official border between them has been drawn.

http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSKCN0WI0LF?utm_content=buffer15bae&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer