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China, Japan need dialogue in all-round way

By Zhou Muzhi (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-09-18 07:57

Chinese president Hu Jintao met a Japanese family in Tokyo on May 6 during his visit to Japan. The family members are descendants of Japanese friends who made great contributions to China-Japan friendship. Xinhua

Asia has been the most energetic region in the world economy over the past several decades. Japan's rapid economic growth in the 1960s, the development of the four Asian Newly Industrial Economies after the 1970s as well as China's fast rise in the past 30 years have all brought significant changes to the societies and economies of the northeast Asian nations.

However, there is the existence of imbroglio over historical issues concerning national trust and national feelings among the countries in Asia, especially between China and Japan.

Meanwhile, China-Japan cooperative mechanisms such as the free trade agreement and cooperation in the fields of investment, energy and environment that is demanded by the integration of the two economies and the division of the work principle, have just started. Some of them have not yet been put on the agenda of political awareness.

The lack of mutual trust and a cooperative mechanism has prevented the two countries from enjoying the age of great exchanges and work division.

Under such a situation, some people with common lofty ideals proposed, in early 2005, to build a new platform for the communication of leaders from all levels of the two countries, hoping such dialogue will further improve bilateral ties. And that is how the Beijing-Tokyo Forum came into being.

The forum is designed to be a high-profile dialogue platform with a brand new concept. Firstly, it is a forum aimed at gathering leaders from all levels to enhance mutual trust through dialogue in an all-round way; secondly, it will convey the correct information for the two sides to understand each other's thinking and strategy; thirdly, it will discuss the impact of public opinion on bilateral ties and thus establish a responsible public voice; fourthly, the forum will explore the future of Asia to portray and create a future that is acceptable to the two countries; lastly, the forum will try to seek solutions to key issues in bilateral ties and try to turn these from problems into cooperative opportunities.

The first forum was held in August, 2005 in Beijing, during which the two sides reached extensive consensus on improving bilateral ties and expressed sincerity about solving the China-Japan crisis.

The second forum was held in Tokyo in the summer of 2006, which was attended by then Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe. In his speech, Abe expressed his emphasis on China-Japan ties and sent a clear signal to the Chinese participants that his administration was determined to improve the bilateral relationship. The second forum played an active role in sending Abe's message to Beijing as well as promoting his visit to China.

This year, the forum has seven sub-discussions covering such fields as media, disaster management, food safety and local cooperation.

The development of the forum has shown that responsible politicians, scholars, media workers as well as business people from both China and Japan are working together to tackle the challenges of reform. They are devoted to creating better and stable bilateral ties and to offering the next generation more freedom and sustainable prosperity.

The author is a professor with Tokyo Keizai University