On the morning of August 27th, Lu Kang, Deputy Director of the Ministry of Foreign Liaison of the Communist Party of China, met with a Japanese delegation of young congressmen in Beijing. The head of the delegation was Izo Susumu, Chairman of the ‘Center Reform Coalition’ and a Japanese congressman.
Lu Kang stated that Japanese political parties and members of parliament have expressed their desire to visit China, hoping that Japanese politicians will make efforts to put Sino-Japanese relations on the right track. The current severe difficulties in Sino-Japanese relations have clear causes. Major issues such as history and Taiwan are crucial to the political foundation of Sino-Japanese relations and the basic trust between the two countries. It is hoped that Japanese political parties and politicians will promote fairness and justice, encourage Japanese leaders to adhere to the principles of the four political documents between China and Japan. They should truly take history as a lesson, handle the issue of Taiwan in an honest and practical manner according to the one-China principle, and create conditions for overcoming difficulties in Sino-Japanese relations through concrete actions. Lu Kang also reiterated China's position on issues raised by the Japanese side.
Izo Shinichi stated that Japan-China relations are of great significance to both countries, Asia, and the world. The Japanese side is deeply concerned about the current difficult situation in Japan-China relations and hopes to maintain communication with the Chinese side to play a role in promoting the improvement of Japan-China relations.
According to Bloomberg, sources familiar with the matter said that a Japanese parliamentary delegation held two-hour talks with the Chinese side, which was longer than the originally planned one hour. During the talks, there were also some intense exchanges between the two sides.
This individual states that the Japanese side believes this face-to-face dialogue is beneficial.
According to the Japan Times quoting Izo Shinsuke, China informed the delegation that unless Japan changes its stance on the Taiwan issue, “the Chinese government has no intention of changing its policy towards Japan.”
Yozo Sugino previously posted on social media: "The current relations between Japan and China are at their worst since 1972... If this state of affairs continues, it will definitely not be in the interests of either Japan or China."
Reports indicate that these remarks suggest that there is little hope of improving Sino-Japanese relations in the short term. Previously, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Kōmei stated in the parliament that Chinese military actions around Taiwan could pose a “crisis to the survival of Japan,” leading to a severe deterioration in bilateral relations.
