Japan has lodged a complaint with China after images of a senior Japanese official appearing to bow before his Chinese counterpart went viral on social media.
In the footage, Japanese diplomat Masaaki Kanai is seen leaning in to listen to the translator after China's Asian affairs chief Liu Jinsong finishes speaking, while the Chinese official stands with his hands in his pockets, making it look like Mr Kanai is slightly bowing.
The incident marked another escalation in the diplomatic spat between Beijing and Tokyo over Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks on Taiwan.
The officials met on Tuesday to ease tensions sparked by Ms Takaichi’s remarks, but they failed to reach any breakthrough. Japanese chief cabinet secretary Minou Kihara said Tokyo was not informed about the press coverage following the meeting between Mr Kanai and Mr Liu.
A video of Mr Liu and Mr Kanai’s meeting was posted by Yuyuan Tantian, a social media account run by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, but was later deleted.
"We have raised the issue with the Chinese side regarding the press arrangements that were made without coordination with the Japanese side," Mr Kihara said.
China's foreign ministry shot back at Tokyo, saying Beijing did not make arrangements with media outlets to take photos or film, according to the South China Morning Post.
"Most of the reporters at the scene were from Japanese media outlets," foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said.
The row began after Ms Takaichi said a Chinese attack on Taiwan threatening Japan's survival could trigger a military response from Tokyo. China, which regards the democratically governed island as its own, was incensed and has said Ms Takaichi will face consequences.
China’s backlash intensified over the weekend, prompting widespread travel cancellations, a ban on seafood imports, and the scrapping of a dozen concerts by Japanese musicians in major Chinese cities.
China suspended the screenings of upcoming Japanese films, and Japanese celebrities popular there have tried to pre-empt any potential backlash with messages showing their support for China.
Beijing has since demanded a retraction of these comments, while Tokyo has maintained that Ms Takaichi's remarks in parliament were in line with the government's position.
Japan and China have also taken their spat to the UN, where both nations traded barbs at each other.
The Chinese envoy lambasted Ms Takaichi's remarks and claimed Tokyo was "totally unqualified to seek a permanent seat on the Security Council".
Japan responded, saying that China's statement was groundless and that Tokyo has contributed to maintaining peace and prosperity in the world.
Meanwhile, a senior Taiwanese security official said on Friday called China the real regional "troublemaker", while handing out copies of a new civil defence handbook.
The handbook, unveiled in September, includes for the first time instructions on what to do if citizens encounter enemy soldiers and stresses that any claims of Taiwan's surrender should be considered false.
It marks Taiwan's latest effort to prepare its population for crises ranging from natural disasters to a Chinese invasion, as Beijing steps up military and political pressure to assert its sovereignty claims over the democratically-governed island.
