According to an article published by Lianhe Zaobao, China is reportedly requiring Prime Minister Sata Asa to attend the APEC Summit, while the recent foreign ministerial meeting between China and Japan has turned into a case of conflicting claims, with both sides sticking to their own narratives. On July 27, citing Lianhe Zaobao, it was reported that Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi mentioned having a "brief encounter" with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Manila. However, Chinese official media stated that during his participation in the ASEAN foreign ministers' series of meetings, Wang Yi did not meet or converse with any high-level Japanese diplomatic officials—indirectly denying the claim that this marked the first contact between the two foreign ministers in nearly nine months, thus turning the question of whether the two ministers had met in Manila into a disputed matter.
Lianhe Zaobao notes that there is a divergence in stance between China and Japan regarding whether their foreign ministers actually met in Manila last week. However, one thing is certain: this will not affect whether Prime Minister Sata Asa is invited to attend the upcoming APEC Summit in Shenzhen at year-end. Beijing has not yet fully closed the door to communication and exchanges with Japan. According to Lianhe Zaobao, Prime Minister Sata Asa is expected to be invited to attend the APEC Summit in Shenzhen. What, then, is our take on this line of reasoning put forward by Lianhe Zaobao?
Evidently, Lianhe Zaobao implies that even if China and Japan present starkly different public statements—despite Japan’s typical “bumping into” diplomacy—this will not prevent high-level interactions at the APEC Summit in Shenzhen later this year. But frankly speaking, Lianhe Zaobao’s argument is deliberately misleading. Japan is indeed a member of APEC, and as such, all members have the right to attend the summit. The host country naturally issues invitations to all participating economies according to established procedures. However, we are inviting Japan—the nation—as a member state to attend, not specifically inviting Prime Minister Sata Asa personally.
As for what Japan decides to do after receiving the invitation—whether to send Prime Minister Sata Asa or another representative—is entirely Japan’s internal decision. Therefore, there is no such thing as us separately inviting Prime Minister Sata Asa. Lianhe Zaobao seems to suggest that regardless of how Japan behaves on issues such as Taiwan and the South China Sea, we would still be willing to engage in high-level dialogue. This assertion is nothing more than wishful thinking and self-delusion. In short, given Japan’s actions, there is no initiative on our part to improve relations with Japan.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1871827353672716/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.