By Yang Yi
Chinese Defense Minister General Cao Gangchuan's current Japan
visit is not only an important exchange between Chinese and
Japanese armed forces, but a crucial event in the development of
the two nations' relations.
China and Japan are neighbors separated by just "a strip of
water" and both are countries that have great influence on the
world. As a result, their bilateral relations have a great deal to
do with regional and world peace, stability and prosperity.
Last year, top leaders from China and Japan reached a consensus
on pushing for the introduction of a strategic mutually-beneficial
relationship. This helped chart the future development of bilateral
ties.
Still, China-Japan relations face challenges posed by structural
problems that are by no means easily settled.
Bilateral military relations are one of these problems.
The military relationship is the most sensitive area and is also
a wind vane indicating good or bad faring of the bilateral
ties.
It could either pose an obstacle to bilateral relations or serve
as an engine powering the progress of the ties.
At present, China and Japan largely lack mutual strategic trust
in the area of military security.
This not only arrests the development of Sino-Japanese strategic
mutually-beneficial relations but is also prone to trigger mistrust
between the two countries, which easily leads to misjudgment, or,
in the worst case scenario, crisis and conflict.
In view of this, it is feasible for the two sides to forge a
mutually-beneficial Chinese-Japanese military security
relationship, in the general context of pushing for the mutual
beneficial strategic relationship between the two nations.
This cannot be achieved overnight. Instead, it calls for the two
sides to work steadily and make progress towards that goal step by
step.
For that purpose, both China and Japan should stick to the road
of peaceful development, adhere to the principles of defensive
military strategy, correctly define one another strategically,
recognize each other's political appeal and legitimate rights and
co-operate with one another in bilateral and multi-lateral
frameworks.
At the same time, both sides should avoid challenging each
other's core national interests and refrain from interfering in
each other's internal affairs. Both sides should not regard each
other as potential adversaries, use force, or threaten to use
force, in settling disputes between them. In the same manner, both
China and Japan should refrain from joining any political and
military alliances targeted at the other side.
China has now embarked on the road toward peaceful
development.
China is accelerating the pace of military modernization for the
sake of contributing to world peace, stability and prosperity. It
pledges to permanently adhere to a defensive military strategy.
Japan should, therefore, recognize China's rational rights and
refrain from trumpeting up the "China threat", let alone advocating
bilateral or multi-lateral military-alliance frameworks in an
effort to contain China.
In the wake of World War II, Japan stuck to the constitution of
peace and trekked along the road of economic development, steering
clear of the old militarist rut. Therefore, Japan played a very
important part in world and regional affairs.
But after the end of the Cold War, in recent years in
particular, Japan has been in pursuit of the status of political
and military power, citing being a "normal country."
Whether or not Japan will continue to travel along the road of
peaceful development depends on whether or not the country can win
the trust of Asian countries and the world at large.
Now that China-Japan relations are improving in an all-around
way, both countries' militaries should seize the golden opportunity
to promote interaction on various levels and boost mutual
understanding and reduce misgivings in order to guarantee the
steady progress of bilateral strategic mutually-beneficial
relationship.
The author is rear admiral of the Chinese Navy and director
of the Institute for Strategic Studies, National Defense
University, PLA.
(China Daily September 1, 2007)
