Tokyo – Japan’s Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi protested in a gathering Sunday along with his Chinese counterpart the detention of a Japanese nationwide in Beijing and raised “strong concern’ about China’s escalating military activity near Taiwan and around Japan.
Hayashi is on a two-day visit in China, becoming Japan’s first diplomat to make the trip in more than three years as frictions grow between the countries. He also met Chinese Premier Li Qiang and top diplomat Wang Yi later Sunday.
During his talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang, Hayashi demanded an early release of an employee of the Japanese pharmaceutical company Astellas Pharma, who was detained in Beijing last month over what the Chinese Foreign Ministry described as spying allegations. Neither side has offered further details about the man nor the allegations against him.
Hayashi told reporters he raised “critical concern” about China’s increasingly assertive maritime activity in the East and South China seas, and stressed the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.
He said he also expressed grave concern about Beijing’s increased joint military activity with Russia around Japan while Moscow wages war against Ukraine, and urged China to act responsibly for global peace.
Hayashi said he told Qin that their countries have the possibility of improved cooperation in economic, cultural and people exchanges, but also face “many issues and critical issues’ and that “Japan-China relations are currently at an extremely important phase.”
The two ministers agreed to work collectively in reaching “a constructive and stable relationship” as agreed between their leaders in November, Hayashi stated.
The sides agreed to enhance communication in regional safety, and welcomed the institution of a protection hotline final week and the resumption of protection talks, Hayashi stated.
Hayashi stated that he and Premier Li shared the significance of their bilateral financial ties, and that it was essential that Japanese nationals and corporations really feel protected to function in China.
Despite shut financial and enterprise ties between the 2 Asian powers, Tokyo and Beijing have been more and more at odds in recent times as Japan considers China’s rising affect within the area a risk to its safety and financial system.
Qin in the meantime warned towards Japanese involvement in points associated to Taiwan, the self-ruled island that China claims as its personal, saying Tokyo mustn’t intrude and ‘undermine China’s sovereignty in any method,” according to a statement from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Using strong language, Qin said “the Taiwan difficulty is on the core of China’s core pursuits and issues the political basis of China-Japan relations.”
Japan does not formally recognize Taiwan, but has strong unofficial ties with the island. It has been making statements of concern about regional stability in the Taiwan Strait and sent several prominent parliamentary delegations to Taipei.
Japan is increasingly worried about a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan because of its proximity to southwestern Japanese islands as well as disputed East China Sea islands, which are claimed by both Tokyo and Beijing, and has bolstered its defenses recent years.
The Japan coast guard said in a statement over the weekend that three Chinese coast guard ships had entered the Japanese-controlled waters around Senkaku Islands, which Beijing calls the Diaoyu. A Japanese patrol ship repeatedly demanded they leave while protecting two Japanese fishing boats, the coast guard said.
Qin criticized Japan over its new export controls of semi-conductor manufacturing equipment that require companies to get government permission. The U.S. has imposed similar measures and Japan had acknowledged consulting with Washington on its own regulation.
“The U.S. as soon as used bullying ways to brutally suppress Japan’s semiconductor trade, and now it’s repeating the identical outdated methods towards China,” Qin said, urging Japan not to be America’s pawn. “One mustn’t do unto others what one wouldn’t have performed unto oneself.”
Hayashi stated the measure shouldn’t be focusing on any particular nation. But it was seen as a part of a U.S.-led settlement to verify superior semi-conductor manufacturing stays out of the attain of the Chinese trade.
The final Japanese international minister to go to China was Hayashi’s predecessor, Toshimitsu Motegi, in 2019, simply earlier than China imposed rigorous pandemic border controls and different measures.