Japan and China 'agree to improve ties'

[Molawchai]

BBC News - Japan and China 'agree to improve ties' 29 October 2010

Japan's foreign minister, Seiji Maehara, said the private meeting was calm

The foreign ministers of China and Japan have met on the sidelines of the Asean summit in a move that could help ease tensions between their countries.

The Japanese foreign minister, Seiji Maehara, said he and his Chinese counterpart, Yang Jiechi, had agreed to make efforts to improve bilateral ties.

A bitter diplomatic row flared up last month over a group of disputed islands.

The regional summit in Vietnam has so far been dominated by discussions about next month's elections in Burma.

On Thursday, diplomats demanded that the country's military government release immediately the pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, who has spent 15 of the last 21 years imprisoned or under house arrest.

But Burma reportedly would not say whether she would be freed when her detention expires on 13 November, six days after the polls.

'Good atmosphere'

During the summit in Hanoi on Friday, the Japanese and Chinese envoys met privately in a bid to repair relations soured when a Chinese fishing boat collided with two Japanese patrol boats near a group of disputed islands in the East China Sea.

The islands - known in Japan as Senkaku and in China as Diaoyu - are controlled by Japan, but claimed by China. They are close to key shipping lanes, offer rich fishing grounds and are thought to contain oil deposits

"The discussion took place in a good atmosphere. It was held calmly while both sides said what we should say. I believe it is likely that the leaders of China and Japan will hold a meeting here in Hanoi," Mr Maehara told reporters afterwards.

There has been speculation over whether Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao will hold direct talks with Japan's Prime Minister, Naoto Kan.

Both countries had agreed to improve ties and "press forward the strategic, mutually beneficial relationship", Mr Maehara added.

He also said he had asked Mr Yang to unblock the export of rare earth minerals and reopen talks on the joint development of a gas field in the East China Sea - called Shirakaba by Japan and Chunxiao by China - and that he had replied that both requests would be considered.

China suspended talks about the gas field last month, but has denied also stopping the export to Japanese businesses of rare earths, which are used to produce electronic items such as mobile phones.

Other territorial disputes involving China and its neighbours are expected to be discussed during the summit, which will broaden to include other leaders from Asia, the US and Russia.

 

[PeaceGen]

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...tion-to-improve-ties-with-japan-idUSKBN1FH026


China declares intention to improve ties with Japan

Ben Blanchard
3 MIN READ


BEIJING (Reuters) - China hopes to work with Japan to establish more cordial relations, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Japanese counterpart on Sunday, aiming to move on from a series of disputes, some dating back to before World War Two.


Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono, left, shakes hands with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi before their meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, China Jan. 28, 2018. REUTERS/Andy Wong/Pool
China and Japan have sparred frequently about their painful history, with Beijing often accusing Tokyo of not properly atoning for Japan’s invasion of China before and during the war.

Ties between China and Japan, the world’s second and third-largest economies, have also been plagued by a long-running territorial dispute over a cluster of East China Sea islets and suspicion in China about Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s efforts to amend Japan’s pacifist constitution.

The two nations have, however, sought to improve ties more recently, with Abe and Chinese President Xi Jinping having met in November on the sidelines of a regional summit in Vietnam.


Wang told Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono that his trip to Beijing, coming so early in the year, showed Japan’s strong wish to improve relations and that China approves of this because better ties would be in both nations’ interests.

Though there has been positive progress, there are also many “disturbances and obstacles”, Wang said, but the minister also pointed to comments from Abe on wanting to improve relations.


Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono, left, meets with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang at the Zhongnanhai Leadership Compound in Beijing, Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018. REUTERS/Andy Wong/Pool
“China-Japan ties always sail against the current, either forging ahead or drifting backward,” Wang said in front of reporters at the start of talks with his counterpart.

“We hope that the Japanese side will neither relax in its efforts nor fall back, and turn the spoken statements into concrete actions.”


Slideshow (5 Images)
Kono, who later met Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, said that the two countries shared a major responsibility in safeguarding the stability and prosperity of Asia and the world at large.

“Not only do we need to manage our bilateral relations, but we also need to work together to deal with issues facing the entire globe, in particular the issue of North Korea,” Kono said. “We desire to extend mutual cooperation between our two countries in working towards resolving this issue.”


Japan has repeatedly pressed China to do more to help rein in North Korea’s missile and nuclear programmes. China says it is committed to enforcing U.N. sanctions but that all parties need to do more to reduce tensions and restart talks.

Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman Norio Maruyama told reporters that China and Japan are aiming to hold several high-level visits this year. These would include Abe visiting China and Xi going to Japan, he said, though no dates have been set.

“Let’s see. It’s all a question of the schedule,” he said.

Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Nick Macfie and David Goodman

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

[淼淼De微笑]

Don't trust Japanese. They always pretend to improve ties with China. Whereas do eveything to counter China.
Say one thing and do another,typical japanese.

 

[yantong1980]

Let see how Japanese will 'play' this. Curious and yes, doubt at the same time.