FROM EIR DAILY ALERT
China and Japan Open New Era of Cooperation in New Silk Road Spirit
May 11, 2018 (EIRNS)—China’s Prime Minister Li Keqiang has stayed in Japan following the China-Japan-South Korean Summit, holding extremely productive meetings aimed at firmly establishing a new era of cooperation in global development.
Li attended a ceremony commemorating the 40th anniversary of the signing of the China-Japan Peace and Friendship Treaty, and also a meeting of former politicians who were involved in putting that treaty together. Speaking there, Li emphasized that the two countries must take “new steps” to move forward in their ties, not only to bolster the confidence of their own people, but that of the international community as well.
Host Prime Minister Shinzo Abe welcomed Li’s remarks, emphasizing that both nations can now take on more responsibility in resolving regional issues, such as jointly promoting infrastructure development in Asia, and by setting up a cross-departmental committee. China and Japan, he said, have now entered into an “era of coordination,” rather than competition.
In commenting on the visit, Global Times recommends steps that can be taken to further enhance relations, but specifically urges China and Japan “to abandon a traditional geopolitical way of thinking and jointly explore paths to mutual benefit.” Xinhua also referred to the cross-department mechanism for promoting third-party market cooperation under the framework of the China-Japan high-level economic dialogue, and to organize a forum on the third-party market cooperation.
The head of Japan Business Federation, Sadayuki Sakakibara, long known as “Mr. Yen,” attended the reception, saying he looked forward to further high-level bilateral meetings, pointing out that both nations’ business sectors can collaborate, especially within the framework of the Belt and Road.
This morning, when visiting a factory of Japanese carmaker Toyota in Hokkaido, Li called for deepening bilateral cooperation on joint R&D and innovation so as to produce competitive high-tech goods that meet the demands of Chinese and Japanese markets and also third-party markets. China also agreed to grant Japan RMB Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (RQFII) a quota of 200 billion yuan (about $31.36 billion), allowing Japanese to invest in Chinese stock and bond markets.
