RELATIONS between China and Japan are on the mend again, after occasional pouts and spats. The current upswing in ties has resulted in, and is buoyed by, Chinese premier Wen Jiabao's visit to Tokyo during the week.
First came Wen's summit with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe. Wen said the meeting had inspired him to compose a poem at midnight on the early onset of spring.
Another event during Wen's three-day visit was his address to the Diet, Japan's Parliament. It was the first such occasion by a Chinese leader in 22 years, further symbolising the warming of relations.
However, he also pressed China to actuate that remorse in concrete actions, particularly when Japan has been fluctuating in its views on its own wartime conduct.
For its part, China is offering Japanese investors various openings in Beijing's plans for peaceful development. It will not be lost on the Japanese that Wen's delegation is loaded with economic officials, while an explicit invitation for Japanese partnership in exploring East China Sea resources has been extended.
Will Japanese leaders seize the moment and reciprocate with goodwill gestures designed to enhance mutual interests, or will they stick to old irritations like visits to the controversial Yasukuni war shrine?
Wen underlined his point by stressing that the friendship between China and Japan is “unshakeable”. However, he also said that Beijing would never accept Taiwan independence, telling the Japanese to stick with the mainland over the island.
An unshakeable fact is that China and Japan are two large neighbours with plenty to gain if they could learn to get along better. It is not without reason that trade and investment between them have been growing impressively, despite occasional diplomatic hiccups.
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