Economics, Politics and Public Policy in East Asia and the Pacific
Author: Shiro Armstrong, ANU
Japan and China are often seen as adversaries, locked into bickering and an historically antagonistic relationship.
They are neighbouring economic giants which have a host of unresolved historical issues to deal with and a natural rivalry for regional — and now global — influence.
Author: Li Mingjiang, RSIS
The recent annual sessions of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) — two of the most important political events in China — demonstrated the extent to which the country’s elite aspire to safeguard China’s interests in the East Asian seas.
But in his report to the NPC, Premier Wen Jiabao also vowed to prioritise efforts to improve relations with neighbouring countries. Read more…
Author: Yoichi Funabashi, Japan
Japan’s triple disaster has illuminated the country’s vulnerabilities. Tokyo Electric Power Co. (Tepco), the beleaguered operator of the Fukushima nuclear reactors, previously announced that it will take six to nine months to stabilise the still unstable reactors.
In the meantime, energy supply will continue to be disrupted. The bond market is starting to shake following the savage downgrading of Tepco corporate bonds, sparking fears for the collapse of the Japanese government bond. Read more…
Author: Amy King, Oxford University
On 21–22 May, Japan hosted the Fourth China-Japan-South Korea Trilateral Summit.
As the first such meeting since the triple (earthquake-tsunami-nuclear) disaster in Japan, it was largely focused on disaster recovery efforts. Read more…
Author: Aurelia George Mulgan, ADFA@UNSW
The dispute over Japan’s temporary detention of a Chinese fishing boat captain accused of colliding with two Japanese coastguard vessels in the territorial waters of the Senkaku Islands reveals the very shallow level of goodwill between China and Japan.
China’s official response to Japan’s actions was initially confined to action in diplomatic, cultural and economic realms, but the Chinese also threatened additional retaliatory measures if the Chinese fishing boat captain was not released immediately and unconditionally. Now that the release has occurred, China’s next move is unclear. Read more…
Author: Joel Rathus, Adelaide University and Meiji University
This month’s issue of Voice, conducted a public poll looking, among other things, at Japan’s China policy. Polling on three questions in particular are interesting for what they say about the bipolar character of Japanese feelings about dealings with China. The polls reveal that Japanese want a friendly relationship with China. They also accord a prominent place in the national psyche for the Yasukuni Shrine without a hint of contradiction.
In response to the question, ‘Do you agree with the new Administration’s China policy; East Asian community, and East Sea Joint Development etc.’, half of the respondents said they agreed while 35 per cent disagreed. Read more…
Author: Shiro Armstrong, ANU
The Democratic Party of Japan’s (DPJ) secretary general and power broker Ozawa Ichiro recently took 645 DPJ members and other leaders to China in an unprecedented move for both countries. This is a big step in following up on the DJP’s promise to mend relations with China. There is talk now of making progress on the difficult history issue and of moving beyond it. Other rumours have Prime Minister Hatoyama visiting Nanjing this year — the site of Japanese imperial war atrocities — in exchange for a visit by President Hu to Hiroshima.
The Sino-Japanese relationship has come a long way since a decade ago. Read more…