Hu's Tokyo win

It is suddenly looking likely that solid achievement could result from the Hu Jintao-Yasuo Fukuda summit in Tokyo, although it has little to do with the fundamentals of China-Japan relations. Both leaders need the bump that success would bring, if for different reasons.

While the frosty ties are a thing of the past that dominated during much of the administration of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi – who insisted on annual visits to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine where Japanese war criminals are buried – the two Asian giants are still rattled by territorial disputes, the "questions of history” and the perennial fight over who is Asia's top dog.

Most recently, poison-laced Chinese dumplings on sale in supermarkets all over Japan highlighted yet another version of the "China threat” among the Japanese public.
Nonetheless, possibilities for a breakthrough in Sino-Japanese relations have significantly increased over the past month due to setbacks the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) administration has suffered because of its suppression of rioting protesters in Tibet – and its monumental mishandling of Olympics-related propaganda.

Leaders of major Western countries have threatened to boycott the opening ceremony of the Summer Games. And the outburst of nationalistic if not xenophobic sentiments by Chinese in more than 20 countries has thrown into the spotlight the regime's hostility against many aspects of globalisation.

Chinese officials and the official media have over the past few weeks come up with a series of up-beat assessments of the Hu-Fukuda talks. While meeting Beijing-based Japanese correspondents on Sunday, Hu said he was confident of a "warm spring for the friendship between the two peoples.” The president indicated that he is keen to "enhance mutual trust, friendship and cooperation, make progress for the future, and comprehensively push forward bilateral strategic and reciprocal relations.”

Hu added that the "strategic relationship of mutual benefit” between both countries would be consolidated. Concerning sovereignty disputes over the East China Sea – which is said to straddle huge hoards of natural gas – Hu exuded confidence that both sides could find mutually agreeable methods to "adequate resolve the issue.”

Diplomatic analysts in Beijing and Tokyo have noted that Hu steered clear of the "question of history,” shorthand for demands that the Japanese leadership stop offending "the feelings of the Chinese people” through means such as embellishing the atrocities of the Japanese Imperial Army.

Instead, senior Chinese officials and commentators have focused on the positive elements in bilateral links.

The official China News Service quoted veteran diplomat Wang Taiping as saying that 2008 would be a "leap-forward development year” for bilateral ties. Wang described Hu's trip as a "journey full of the promise of spring.” He added the top leader would send his hosts this important message: "China will bring something good to Japan, become Japan's partner, and acknowledge and handle Sino-Japanese relations from a strategic high point.”

This is an edited version of an article that can be viewed in full at www.asiasentinel.com.