Renewal of exchanges can help restore good ties

Editor's Note: China's Ambassador to Japan Kong Xuanyou, who will leave the post soon, held a farewell reception in Tokyo on Friday. More than 800 people attended it, including former Japanese prime ministers Yasuo Fukuda and Yukio Hatoyama. The following are excerpts of Kong's speech:

Despite the multiple impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, geopolitical interference and the global economic downturn, the economic and trade cooperation between China and Japan has bucked the trend, with bilateral trade reaching a record high of about $370 billion last year, demonstrating its strong resilience. This fully demonstrates the fundamentals of our deep economic interdependence and intertwined interests.

Friends in the business community of Japan have told me that they are optimistic about the Chinese market and have full confidence in the prospects and potential of China-Japan economic and trade cooperation.

Mutual benefit has always been the main theme of China-Japan cooperation and the basic agenda for China-Japan relations. We should hold high the banner of win-win cooperation, overcome internal and external disturbances, maintain the stability of the industry and supply chains, and work together to inject more stability and positive energy into Asia's development, regional cooperation and the global recovery.

This year marks the 45th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between China and Japan. The two sides should maintain communication on strengthening high-level interactions and institutional dialogue, and actively plan exchanges between representatives of governments, political parties, parliaments, localities and youth.

Exchanges and cooperation in various fields should be steadily resumed. We look forward to the two sides seizing the dividends of the post-COVID-19 era, making up the deficit in personnel exchanges and dialogue as soon as possible, unleashing a new wave of exchanges to set China-Japan relations on the right track again.

Since I came to work in Osaka as a diplomat in 1985, I have witnessed the development and changes in Japanese society as well as the ups and downs in China-Japan relations.

I am fully aware of the importance and complexity of China-Japan relations. My biggest impression is that as long as China and Japan, as neighbors who cannot move away and as partners with a long history of exchanges, earnestly abide by the spirit of the four political documents, always manage bilateral relations from a strategic and long-term perspective, stay committed to the right direction of peace, friendship and cooperation, uphold good faith and friendship as neighbors, and constructively manage disputes and differences, we will be able to build a more mature, stable, healthy and strong China-Japan relationship and open up bright prospects for bilateral relations in a new era.