Photo: VCG

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke with the new Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi on Thursday by phone. Wang urged Japan to remain firm, not to walk backwards or cross the line on history issues, the Taiwan question and other major issues concerning the political foundation of bilateral relations and basic mutual trust.

During the phone call, Wang elaborated on China's principles on issues related to the Diaoyu Islands, Hong Kong, Xinjiang and the South China Sea.

Since Fumio Kishida took office as the Japanese prime minister, leaders from both countries have carried out active exchanges and reached consensus to build the bilateral relations that meet the requirements of the new era, Wang said. The two countries should make plans to push bilateral ties along the right track for a steady and long-term development by taking the 50th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between China and Japan next year as the opportunity, Wang noted.

As important players in the region and second and third largest economies in the world, China and Japan should follow the trend of the times and steer bilateral relations in the right direction to bring more benefits to the two peoples, Asia and the world, Wang said.

We hope that Japan will abide by the principles of the four political documents between the two countries, view China's development in an objective and rational way, and reflect the political consensus that the two countries are "cooperative partners rather than threats to each other," Wang noted.

On such major issues as history and the Taiwan question that weight on the political foundation of bilateral relations and the basic trust of the two sides, China and Japan should remain firm and avoid crossing the bottom line, Wang said.

He said the two sides should strive to achieve a higher level of complementarity and mutual benefit, jointly maintain stability of the global industrial and supply chains and a fair and open trade and investment environment and boost high-quality development and improvement of people's livelihood in both countries.  

The two sides should give full play to the unique advantages of geographical proximity and cultural affinity and create a positive public opinion and social atmosphere by taking advantage of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games and the "China-Japan Cultural Exchange and Sports Promotion Year," Wang urged.

As important countries in the region, China and Japan should be aware of their international responsibilities, jointly practice true multilateralism, and reject any attempt to engage in division and confrontation or even a new Cold War, according to Wang.

As the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will come into effect next January, the two countries should make joint efforts to lead and advance the process of regional cooperation and integration in Asia, Wang said.

Wang pointed out that Japan and the US are allies while China and Japan are neighbors. China and the US are communicating on strategic issues concerning the future of the two countries and we hope Japan can grasp the trend, keep in mind the common interests of its own country and the region, and properly handle its relations with China and the US, Wang said.

During the phone call, Hayashi noted that the international community is under major changes with the increasing importance of Asia and China's rapid development. Japan is ready to work with China to take the 50th anniversary of the normalization of bilateral relations next year as an opportunity to strengthen dialogue and exchanges, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, increase people-to-people exchanges, properly manage differences, shoulder responsibility for addressing global challenges, implement the consensus of "not posing a threat to each other" and promote stable and constructive Japan-China relations.