Editorial
Efforts to build trust with Asian neighbors to test Hatoyama's 'fraternal' diplomacy
Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama took the first steps in his diplomatic plans with his talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao Monday, prior to the U.N. summit on climate change in New York Tuesday.
Japan's relations with China are as important as the Japan-U.S. alliance for the Hatoyama administration -- which attaches particular importance to its relations with Asian neighbors -- and Hatoyama's plan to build diplomatic relations based on trust with the countries of Asia faced their first test in his meeting with the Chinese president.
His summit talks lasted for nearly an hour, far longer than scheduled. "In a relaxed atmosphere, I was able to frankly express my feelings," Hatoyama said. The prime minister appeared satisfied, apparently because he was able to show his spirit of fraternity in his first summit meeting with the leader of another country.
"I'd like to nurture international relations based on a spirit of fraternity," Hatoyama was quoted as telling Hu when he referred to his East Asian Community plan. "While recognizing differences between our two countries, we'd like to overcome them and build a relationship of trust with each other."
Prime Minister Hatoyama regards his East Asian Community plan as the core of his government's Asian diplomacy. In an article he contributed to a magazine before taking office, Hatoyama describes the plan as one of the national goals he will pursue in a spirit of fraternity, and underscores the need for an Asian single currency.
In East Asia, political systems, cultures and values vary from country to country, and there are wide economic disparities between countries. It is not easy to create a single community.
Before taking office, Hatoyama said, "It's not a bad thing to have a dream. Everything starts as a dream but comes true in the end." Before achieving his goal of creating a single community, many issues should be addressed, such as the roles of the United States and the Japan-U.S. alliance in the plan. However, the East Asian Community plan should be interpreted as an ideal he is pursuing -- as a symbol of his diplomacy in a spirit of fraternity.
One of the barriers to promoting Japan-China relations is a bilateral dispute over gas field development in the East China Sea. Despite an agreement in June last year, efforts to jointly develop gas fields in the area remain stalled.
Prime Minister Hatoyama proposed that the East China Sea, which is a disputed sea area, should be transformed into a "sea of fraternity." President Hu responded that he wants to make the area a "sea of peace, friendship and cooperation" while cautioning that gas field development is a sensitive issue. The Chinese leader's remarks should be interpreted as an expression of his will to settle bilateral disputes through negotiations. China should make further efforts toward that end.
The prime minister told Hu that his government will assume former Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama's 1995 statement apologizing Japan's wartime aggression against its Asian neighbors, and colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula. Hu reportedly responded that he appreciates Hatoyama's declaration. This will likely help improve Japan's ties with China.
Hatoyama earlier announced that he will not visit Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine where Class A war criminals are enshrined along with the war dead. His stance will certainly lay the groundwork for overcoming differences in the interpretation of history between the two countries.
(Mainichi Japan) September 23, 2009