The goodwill gesture shown by newly elected Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba toward China comes as a ray of hope for the future of Sino-Japanese relations, but it remains to be seen if he means it or, like many Japanese politicians before, will say one thing and do another when it comes to handling relations with China.
At a recent news briefing during his debut in a series of ASEAN summits and related meetings in Vientiane, capital of Laos, Ishiba said “clues have been found to solve the problems in Japan-China relations”, although he admitted the ties between the two countries are not entirely smooth sailing. “It is hoped that through the efforts of the two governments, the two peoples can share the fruits of the development of Japan-China relations,” Ishiba said.
During his earlier meeting with Premier Li Qiang on the sidelines of the ASEAN summits, Ishiba said that Japan is willing to work with China to strengthen high-level exchanges, conduct closer dialogue and communication at all levels, and resolve pending issues through consultation, and push for steady and long-term development of China-Japan relations based on mutually beneficial cooperation.
If the Japanese government can honor Ishiba’s words, it will indeed serve the common interests of the two countries. As two neighbors and important economic and trade partners, there is no reason for China and Japan to not follow the path of peace, friendship, mutually beneficial cooperation and common development. The two countries are still highly complementary economically, and still have huge potential to explore more new growth points, especially in the fields of scientific and technological innovation, the digital economy and green development. A peaceful and stable Sino-Japanese relationship not only benefits the two sides, but will also help boost development in the Asia-Pacific and beyond.
However, it is regrettable that Japan has been the vanguard of the US’ China-containment strategy. And if Japan fails to free itself from Washington’s China-containment strategy, it will be difficult to improve its ties with China.
The Ishiba government is now at a starting point to repair Sino-Japanese relations. But the fundamental improvement of China-Japan relations entails Japan matching its words with actions.