China and Japan yesterday pledged to intensify efforts to have
more diplomatic dialogue and defensive cooperation apart from
high-level economic talks and mutual support for peaceful
development.
China has lifted the ban on rice imports from Japan, and the two
countries will continue to work on the trade in agriculture
products.
These are parts of the strategic and mutually beneficial
relationship detailed in a joint press statement the two countries
released yesterday after Premier Wen Jiabao met with Japanese Prime Minister
Shinzo Abe.
This is the second joint press statement by China and Japan in
six months.
The document, carrying more weight than the one issued in
October during Abe's ice-breaking visit to Beijing, covers a wider
range of issues in a bid to take the bilateral ties to a new
stage.
The two sides agreed to have navy-fleet exchanges at an early
date and enhance the communication mechanism between the defense
authorities of the two countries.
Also, Japan has invited the Chinese defense minister to visit
Japan in autumn.
The two countries are committed to peace and stability not only
between them, but also in the rest of Asia and the world.
The two foreign ministries will continue the close cooperation
in regional and global issues of common concern by enhancing the
bilateral strategic, security and economic partnership
negotiations.
Since Japan is thinking of cooperating with China in helping
African countries, the two neighbors have decided to strengthen
negotiation on the subject.
On Japan's bid for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council,
China expressed its consistent position, saying it is willing to
see Japan play a bigger constructive role in international
affairs.
The two sides said they will enhance negotiations on the world
body's reform to look for common ground.
They reaffirmed their commitment to carry out the February
landmark agreement on Pyongyang's nuclear issue. China sympathized
with Japan over the kidnapping issue, saying it is willing to offer
all necessary help.
Sectors of mutual collaboration of the neighbors range from
energy, the environment, agriculture, medical research and
protection of intellectual property to finance, the judiciary and
criminal justice and communication technology.
They agreed to begin work on cleaning the Bohai Bay and Yangtze
River areas to prevent air and sea pollution, acid rain and
sandstorms.
They will increase their cooperation on model projects to
promote energy efficiency and businesses that are environmentally
friendly.
The two sides announced that they will work out a consensus to
start negotiations over a treaty for mutual legal help before the
end of the year and push for consultations over extradition and
transfer of convicts.
Also, the neighbors will enhance collaboration and cooperation
in the supervision of their financial sectors.
The two sides expect to increase people-to-people exchanges,
too.
To mark the 35th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic
ties between the two countries, Tokyo will send about 20,000
Japanese on a tour of 19 Chinese cities this year.
Premier Wen Jiabao and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe
yesterday agreed on concrete steps to build mutually beneficial
strategic ties.
Wen's three-day trip, the first by a Chinese
premier in nearly seven years, comes six months after Abe went to
Beijing to mend ties chilled by his predecessor Junichiro Koizumi,
who repeatedly visited Yasukuni Shrine that honors Japan's war
criminals of World War II.
Yesterday, the two leaders also signed agreements on energy and
the environment besides the joint statement.
An environmental accord called for the two to work on a
successor to the Kyoto Protocol on climate change by 2013.
The other agreement committed the two nations to cooperate on
developing energy resources and building nuclear power plants in
China.
During their talks, Wen said that the history issue is crucial
for bilateral relations as it affects the national feeling of the
Chinese people. It could be an obstacle to improved ties if not
handled well, he added.
He urged the Japanese leaders to face up to history and "open up
good, forward-looking relations toward a beautiful future".
Wen also reiterated China's position on the Taiwan question,
hoping the Japanese side can realize the acute sensitivity of the
issue and deal with it properly.
Abe reiterated Japan's commitment to the principles enunciated
in the three joint documents directing bilateral relations.
On disputed waters in the East China Sea, the two sides agreed
to speed up the negotiation process to seek a solution that is
acceptable to both. The two sides pledged to make the area "a sea
of peace, cooperation and friendship".
(China Daily April 12, 2007)
