Highlights
– President Hu Jintao is first Chinese president to visit Japan in over a decade
– Despite symbolic gestures of friendship, no substantive issues resolved
– Japanese protests indicate continued feelings of animosity towards China at the grass roots level
– Leaders demonstrate efforts to improve relations over the long-term
Chinese President Hu Jintao arrived in Japan on May 6, 2008, becoming the first Chinese president to visit Japan in more than a decade. While Hu’s five-day visit was marked by protests regarding China’s controversial human rights record, the meetings laid the foundation for improving ties between the two nations.
Former Chinese President Jiang Zemin was the first Chinese president to visit Japan after the two countries established diplomatic relations more than 30 years ago. However, he reprimanded Japanese officials for not extending an official apology for Japan’s atrocities in China during World War II. Tensions were heightened again when former Japanese Prime Minister (PM) Junichiro Koizumi repeatedly visited a shrine honoring convicted war criminals.
Nevertheless, meetings between President Hu and Japanese PM Yasuo Fukuda demonstrated that both countries are now committed to building closer ties.
Symbolic Improvements
The emphasis of the meeting was “friendship and cooperation,” further illustrated by numerous symbolic gestures throughout Hu’s visit. China offered to loan two pandas to Tokyo, in light of the recent death of the 22-year old giant panda Ling Ling at a Tokyo zoo. Later in the trip, President Hu played a game of table tennis with Ai Fukuhara, a Japanese table tennis star.
During an address at Waseda University, Hu mentioned Japan’s World War II invasion of China; however, instead of demanding an apology as former Chinese leaders have done, he stated, “This unfortunate history not only caused tremendous suffering to the Chinese people but also gravely hurt the Japanese people. It’s important for us to remember history, but this does not mean we should hold grudges.”
The visit also marked the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Sino-Japanese Treaty of Peace and Friendship and the year China opened up its economy. China surpassed the United States (US) as Japan’s largest trading partner when bilateral trade reached US$237 billion in 2007.
Contentious Issues Diplomatically Ignored
Despite pledges by both sides to expand cooperation, several key issues were left unresolved. PM Fukuda reported that the two countries were close to resolving a dispute over gas fields in the East China Sea; however, no concrete plans were made on the issue. Additionally, both sides ignored the problem of tainted dumplings from China that poisoned ten Japanese people in January 2008.
Japanese leaders were also careful to avoid mentioning the outbreak of riots in Tibet that led to international protests of the Olympic torch relay (Previous Report). Nevertheless, thousands of people turned out to protest the Chinese leader’s visit as he arrived on May 6, 2008, holding signs that read “Hu Jintao, respect the Olympic spirit!” and “Don’t kill our friends.” The following day several dozen alumni of Waseda signed a statement calling Hu “the chief executive of oppression over the right to ethnic self-determination and human rights of the Tibetans.”
Continued Improvements on the Horizon
The Sino-Japanese relationship will continue to be fragile as the territorial disputes and food safety issues remain unresolved and rising nationalism in both countries hinders greater exchange among the grass roots level. However, the visit marked a significant step towards increasing trust and Hu’s remarks at Waseda signals an effort to move forward, instead of dwelling on past transgressions.
Improving international relations is important to China as it prepares to host the 2008 Beijing Olympics and Chinese leaders will most likely avoid making any controversial statements with regards to the gas dispute in the East China Sea. Similarly closer ties are important to Tokyo as economic interdependence continues to deepen.
While concrete changes are unlikely to occur in the near-term, promises of annual meetings between the two countries will likely lead to long-term Sino-Japan cooperation.
