A diplomatic spat between Japan and China over the suicide of a Japanese Consulate General official in Shanghai rippled further Sunday as Tokyo issued a statement calling Beijing's claims made a day earlier untrue and also noting there were "regrettable actions" taken by the Chinese side.

Regarding a statement issued Saturday by the Chinese Embassy in Japan that asserted Japan said the suicide was due to job stress, the Foreign Ministry said, "The Japanese side has not expressed such a position."

The dispute, which came amid already icy relations between the two countries, arose after the ministry on Dec. 28 acknowledged the suicide and said "regrettable actions" by local Chinese security authorities were believed to be behind it.

The Sunday statement also said Japan "cannot accept the Chinese position that claims 'this incident has nothing to do with Chinese government personnel' " and that Japan had not received any explanation from the Chinese government regarding the facts of the incident.

The suicide came to light on Dec. 27 when a Japanese newspaper reported that the official, reportedly the head of the consulate's encrypted communications, killed himself after leaving a note indicating he was under pressure to provide China with classified information. It was reported that he was being blackmailed over his relationship with a bar hostess.