Japan's national government has refused a request from the Tokyo Metropolitan government to land on the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea, a move observers said has revealed Japan's desire to ease tensions and change its strategy on the island dispute.

The Tokyo government on Wednesday sought landing permission to send a team to conduct a "pre-purchase survey", but the Japanese central government rejected the move because it would create problems with China, Kyodo News reported on Monday.

Ever since Shintaro Ishihara, the hawkish Tokyo governor, proposed the purchase idea in April to clarify the so-called Japanese ownership, Japan's top government officials and senior lawmakers have continued to enflame the diplomatically sensitive situation, affecting Sino-Japanese ties and regional stability.