The joint announcement of "building a strategic relationship of
mutual benefit" by Chinese and Japanese leaders last September is a
summary of both positive and negative experiences since the two
nations normalized bilateral ties. It is also an important
milestone in the new period of bilateral relations with realistic
and solid objectives. It has not come easily.
With economic globalization, China-Japan relations have to a
certain extent reached a state of "interdependency" in many areas,
though still far from the "do or die together" stage. Their common
interests are expanding and mutual reliance deepening. To some
degree they can be seen as "inseparable." One can find evidence in
the following numbers.
Bilateral trade exceeded US$20 billion in 2006; from 2001 to
2004, Japan's export to China increased by 142 percent; in those
four years, Japan's investment in China grew by 9 percent. All this
has not only benefited China but helped Japan's economic recovery
as well. Besides, Japanese companies have profited a lot from its
favorable balance of trade with China.
In politics, the two countries reached consensus on removing
barriers between them after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe took
office. Abe's first visit to China as Japanese prime minister
turned out to be an "ice- breaking trip" as the two sides would
strive to build a "strategic mutually beneficial relationship".
Premier Wen Jiabao's "ice-thawing visit" to Japan marked the
start of interaction between senior government leaders and called
on the Japanese public directly for harmonious coexistence and
joint development.
All these moves are in tune with the spirit of the times -
peace, development and cooperation. They are also an answer to both
peoples' wishes.
Moreover, they will definitely play a positive role in advancing
peace, stability and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region and
particularly in Northeast Asia.
However, we must keep in mind we have a long way to go with many
difficulties ahead. We must achieve the following in order to build
up a bilateral "strategic relationship of mutual benefit" and work
toward "harmonious coexistence" and joint development and
prosperity.
First, we must resolutely eliminate the "Cold-War mentality."
China and Japan enjoyed almost 20 years of close and friendly ties
after the normalization of bilateral relations. How could these
ties have fallen into more than 10 years of political wilderness?
The root cause is no other than the Cold-War mentality.
Japan's neo-rightwing, like the neo-conservatives in the United
States, believe their top enemy (or "main strategic rival") today
is China after the collapse of their former arch enemy the Soviet
Union. China belongs to "another type" of country with a different
set of values from theirs; China's development will challenge and
impact their international and strategic interests, which is why
they have to gang up and work together, as well as on their own, to
"contain" China.
They pretend they cannot see China's peaceful development (both
in policy and practice), but insist on drawing the line of
"ideology" and "social system" between themselves and China.
Second, we must abandon the unrealistic idea of "occupy and rule
exclusively."
Japan's economic development used to be "the one to follow" in
Asia. In a sense and to a certain extent it also played a positive
role in China's economic development. Today China is developing
fast, which is a good sign for the prosperity of Asia.
Theoretically, Japan should be happy about this, but regrettably
the Japanese rightwing has been going all out to spread the view
that "there is no room for both" as if China and Japan are destined
to fight each other and only one can survive.
This is very unhealthy, harmful and unrealistic. How can any
country stop China's development? An American expert said it well,
"If you convince yourself that China is an enemy now, you will
eventually make it an enemy". What he said was meant for the US
government's ear, but this honest advice is also appropriate for
the Japanese, too. I have always believed that China and Japan
should truthfully see each other as "strategic partners in
cooperation" or at least "partners in long-term cooperation" so as
to prevent the rise of hostility toward each other and become real
friends; the two nations "should be fine horses" that can gallop
side by side toward prosperity rather than "tigers."
China is not interested in vying for "leadership power" with
Japan. The so-called leadership power cannot be claimed by one
country or seized by force. It grows naturally. It not only depends
on comprehensive national strength but how well a country's
policies are in tune with the times.
The Japanese rightwing really has no need to spend so much
energy in imagining and spreading such ridiculous notions. They
would be much better off working harder on world peace and
development than they have so far. I expressed the same opinion at
an international symposium held in Okinawa a few years ago and at a
gathering of Chinese and Japanese diplomacy scholars as well. And I
won applause and encouragement from many Japanese friends on both
occasions.
I hope the Japanese media, experts and scholars join us in
contributing as much as we can to Sino-Japanese friendship.
The third is the Taiwan issue. Japan's rightwing often warns
that if China reunites with Taiwan it will take control of Japan's
"life line," therefore Japan must join the US and make the Taiwan
Straits their "common strategic focus."
The Japanese side must be clear about the following: First of
all, Taiwan is China's territory, not Japan's. Second, what would
Taiwan, which is Chinese territory, mean to China if Japan's claim
that the island, which is not its territory, is its "life line?"
The answer is all too obvious; third, the Taiwan issue touches on
China's core interests, and no other country should even think
about challenging it.
Both the US and Japan should have a clear mind on this issue,
but Japan, for historical reasons, must keep itself out of any
controversy in this regard. After all, if China and Japan remain on
good terms with each other, what the Japanese rightwing calls a
"life line" will be a non-issue unless, of course, Japan thinks
this "life line" is more important than a friendly China.
The fourth concerns the War of Resistance against Japanese
Aggression (1937-1945) and "anti-Japan sentiment." Quite a few
people in Japan, including some of our friends, have something
against memorial sites of the Chinese People's War of Resistance
against Japanese Aggression and movies on that theme made in China.
(The official Chinese full name of the war has sometimes been
shortened, and as such, been interpreted as "anti-Japanese
war").
The Japanese rightwing has played a particularly despicable role
in fanning this misguided sentiment.
This is in fact a colossal misunderstanding. The "anti-Japanese
war" we sometimes hear people talk about refers to the Chinese
People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression or fighting
the Japanese aggressors at a given historic period with the aim of
"remembering past mistakes, and a lesson never to repeat again". It
is totally different from what "anti-Japan" means.
China has always separated the majority of the Japanese people
from those few militarists who launched the war of aggression on
China and does not see Japan's rightwing today as the same kind of
criminals. Teuneo Watanabe, chairman and editor in chief of Yomiuri
Shimbum, recalled recently that he once asked the late Chinese
senior leader Deng Xiaoping if the Japanese people were guilty (of
the war of aggression). Deng replied unmistakably the Japanese
government and a small number of militaristic imperialists of that
time were guilty and the Japanese people were not.
Watanabe said he became a member of the "pro-China" camp from
then on. In fact, this is part of China's national policy. The
Chinese government has always been frank, and acts accordingly. The
Japanese side thinks and does exactly the opposite.
Admittedly, there exists in both countries some kind of a
nationalistic sentiment, which is rather harmful.
We should take a firm and objective view on this issue. First,
the causes (of nationalistic sentiments in the two countries) are
different; and, second, the two countries' policies are different.
The Chinese government is always against nationalism and has always
done its best to guide it toward correctness. There are plenty of
facts to prove it. The Japanese rightwing, however, has always
resorted to encouraging and even using nationalism.
Some rightwing media entities in Japan often deliberately
misrepresent facts and distort truths to mislead the Japanese
public. By doing so they are in fact creating and fanning
anti-China sentiment.
My conclusion: A nation incapable of tolerance is not free; a
nation that refuses to view correctly and own up to its past is one
that others cannot trust. Two nations can only coexist harmoniously
if they tolerate and respect each other and never repeat past
mistakes. It is neither sensible nor reasonable for any country to
expect tolerance and forgiveness from a nation it once victimized
by a war of aggression but refuse to admit the historical facts of
its crime.
The fifth issue concerns Prime Minister Abe's "betting big and
small" on China.
When someone bets both, there are bound to be variables, major
and minor, heavy and light. With this in mind, China is looking at
Prime Minister Abe's betting big and small in a positive light. As
far as our Japan-diplomacy is concerned, we continuously seek new
consensus between the two countries and to resolve our differences
patiently. China's philosophy of a "harmonious world" does not
preclude differences, contradictions and certain conflicts of
interest between one country and another but deals appropriately
with them without hesitation or prejudice. Only by doing so can we
achieve mutual understanding and a balance of interests, which will
pave the way for "cooperation and a win-win situation" as well as
"harmonious coexistence".
We hope Prime Minister Abe's cabinet "bets very big" on
advancing "strategic mutually beneficial cooperation" between the
two countries. The more "bets" placed on this endeavor, naturally,
the less "bets" would be placed on negative developments. This
would a great thing for both China and Japan as well as for Asia
and Northeast Asia in particular. Do not let any such opportunity
pass, because it will not come back.
By Wang Yusheng
The author is a Beijing-based researcher on international
relations.
(China Daily September 12, 2007)
