Sunday Sign of Hope October 8th 2006
China and Japan heal wounds in joint attack on North Korea
It's good to see that there's a limit of bullshit regions are willing to deal with. And if I read this right, a leader of a country actually apologized for something. Wow.
From Scotsman:
CHINA hailed a visit by the new Japanese prime minister yesterday as a "turning point" in relations as they agreed to upgrade trade ties and denounced North Korea's plans for a nuclear test.
Beijing had refused summits with Shinzo Abe's predecessor, Junichiro Koizumi, who stepped down last month, due to his repeated pilgrimages to Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine to war dead, seen by critics as glorifying Japan's past militarism.
But China struck a conciliatory tone and Mr Abe expressed "deep remorse" for past Japanese actions as he broke with tradition in making his first trip abroad since taking office on 26 September to China, rather than the United States.
"Your visit is serving as a turning point in China-Japan relations and I hope it will also serve as a new starting point for the improvement and development of bilateral ties," the Chinese president Hu Jintao, was quoted as telling Mr Abe. Mending ties is key to addressing last week's threat by North Korea to conduct a nuclear test, an issue high on the agenda during Mr Abe's two-day visit to Beijing, which is host to stalled six-party talks on the North Korean nuclear issue.
Mr Abe said the possibility that North Korea would make good on its threat could not be ruled out, adding that if it did so the United Nations would discuss invoking Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, which could lay the groundwork for military force.
A joint statement said China and Japan sides "expressed deep concern" over the threatened nuclear test.
Of Japanese-Sino relations, Mr Abe said: "Sixty years of Japan's post-war history is built on our deep remorse for ... inflicting grave damage and suffering ... on the people of Asia. I feel certain that my visit to China will lead Sino-Japanese ties to a higher level," he said.
Mr Abe flies to South Korea today for talks with Roh Moo-hyun, the president, which are expected to focus on North Korea.
It's good to see that there's a limit of bullshit regions are willing to deal with. And if I read this right, a leader of a country actually apologized for something. Wow.
From Scotsman:
CHINA hailed a visit by the new Japanese prime minister yesterday as a "turning point" in relations as they agreed to upgrade trade ties and denounced North Korea's plans for a nuclear test.
Beijing had refused summits with Shinzo Abe's predecessor, Junichiro Koizumi, who stepped down last month, due to his repeated pilgrimages to Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine to war dead, seen by critics as glorifying Japan's past militarism.
But China struck a conciliatory tone and Mr Abe expressed "deep remorse" for past Japanese actions as he broke with tradition in making his first trip abroad since taking office on 26 September to China, rather than the United States.
"Your visit is serving as a turning point in China-Japan relations and I hope it will also serve as a new starting point for the improvement and development of bilateral ties," the Chinese president Hu Jintao, was quoted as telling Mr Abe. Mending ties is key to addressing last week's threat by North Korea to conduct a nuclear test, an issue high on the agenda during Mr Abe's two-day visit to Beijing, which is host to stalled six-party talks on the North Korean nuclear issue.
Mr Abe said the possibility that North Korea would make good on its threat could not be ruled out, adding that if it did so the United Nations would discuss invoking Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, which could lay the groundwork for military force.
A joint statement said China and Japan sides "expressed deep concern" over the threatened nuclear test.
Of Japanese-Sino relations, Mr Abe said: "Sixty years of Japan's post-war history is built on our deep remorse for ... inflicting grave damage and suffering ... on the people of Asia. I feel certain that my visit to China will lead Sino-Japanese ties to a higher level," he said.
Mr Abe flies to South Korea today for talks with Roh Moo-hyun, the president, which are expected to focus on North Korea.
posted by A Mad Man at 7:38 PM
1 Comments:
I think these Sunday signs of hope are about to go the way of the white tiger
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