Sun, Sep 7, 1997 edition

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Sun, Sep 7, 1997
Sino-Japanese Relations

history and fears about 'new world order' concern China and Asian countries

also: NPC Chair Qiao Shi on the fall; Taipei wishes CCP well ; and French firms ink deal for Guangxi power . . .
Qiao Shi: NPC Chair makes way for Zhu Rongji; party propaganda chief falls
( "Fate of NPC chief in the balance" ) The Hong Kong Standard reports that Qiao Shi, chairman of the National People's Conference, may be shuffled downward in the pecking-order to make way for up and rising vice-Premier Zhu Rongji. "Powerbrokers huddled in the Jingxi Hotel in Beijing on Sunday after an expanded Politburo Standing Committee failed on Saturday to decide the leader's fate," the paper writes. The whole affair is being viewed as a means for Jiang Zemin to consolidate his position, although Mr Qiao will retain his seat on the Politburo Standing Committee, the most powerful decision-making body in the country.
In related news, the paper reports that Ding Guangen, 68, who headed up the party's propaganda department and who is "intensely disliked for his hardline views on the leadership of the party's propaganda machine," has been removed from his post. It would seem that Mr Ding spent part of his youth as a member of the Nationalist Youth League under the Kuomintang.
The paper reports, "Revelations came in behind-closed-door meetings when a senior party official in Mr Ding's office spilled the beans on his boss' previous involvements with the communists' rivals, who now rule Taiwan."
Taiwan: we left out a tidbit from yesterday's Taiwan coverage: (Taipei, Sept. 5) On the eve of the convention of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) 15th Congress, Taiwan said on Friday that it will be happy to see a successful conclusion of the congress. The CCP cabled its best wishes to the 15th National Congress of the Kuomintang (KMT) on August 25.
Japan and China: the future as history
( "Hashimoto ends trip at Dalian hub" ) Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto ended his four day trip to China by touring Dalian, the industrial city in northeast China and a center of Japanese investment.
The entire trip, replete with symbolic importance for Sino- Japanese relations, coincided with the 25th anniversary of the normalization of relations. All of this was deliberate of course, as Hashimoto arrived on Thursday wanting to commemorate this anniversary and then reorient each side's gaze toward the future which portends of greater Japanese involvement in the region's security.
First, there was some unfinished history: In a meeting with Hashimoto, President Jiang Zemin told the prime minister, "Correctly understanding and treating history is an important premise for our two countries as we face the future," reports the China Daily. Jiang then reportedly warned Hashimoto about the 'bad effects' caused by those in Japan who 'deny history and hinder the smooth development of Sino-Japanese relations,' reported the paper.
( "History key to bilateral ties" )
Aiming to allay China's suspicions and concerns about the forthcoming US-Japanese defense pact, the prime minister promised "Japan . . . will never return to the path of militarism or become a military power."
"Chinese officials expressed appreciation for his remarks," reported the South China Morning Post, "but said Japan had to prove its sincerity." Mr Hashimoto departed for Shenyang on Saturday and Dalian on Sunday.
"The fact that I as Prime Minister am going to visit northeast China is to show that I am prepared to look history squarely and face the future," the South China Morning Post quoted him as saying. The symbolic importance of his trip to these city lies in that both served as bases of Japanese power throughout its long occupation during World War Two. It was in Shenyang where Japan orchestrated the ascension of China's last emperor as ruler of the puppet state of Manchukuo which, writes the South China Morning Post in an editorial, was "the scene of some of the worst atrocities of World War II."
If Hashimoto intended to put the past behind him, he could not seem to find the magic words. He expressed his "deep remorse and heartfelt apology" for Japan's involvement in the war, but this was the exact phrase spoken by his predecessor Tomiichi Murayama in 1995. As the paper writes:

"Mr Hashimoto made it clear he would not go further than the formula used by his Socialist predecessor who, though ideologically and temperamentally more inclined to remorse, was similarly constrained by domestic politics. A vocal minority of Japanese, particularly from Mr Hashimoto's party, still defend the country's wartime actions although, as the prime minister rightly pointed out to his host, the vast majority reject such views."
The paper concluded, "Mr Hashimoto has made a brave effort, but as far as Beijing is concerned he has failed to convince or reassure.."
And then there were the concerns for the future: as much as history per se stood at the center of China's attention, the review of the US-Japanese defense pact, now in the final stage and scheduled to be completed this month, ranked high on its list of concerns.
As the South China Morning Post explains, "A key objective of Mr Hashimoto's visit is to sell a regional security approach which both tries to bring China into a new Asian order with Japan as the other key player and at the same time builds Japan's defence ties with the United States. Even the new Asian order is viewed with ambivalence in Beijing and elsewhere in the region because it clearly implies Japan's development as a military counterweight to China."
As part of this new defense pact, Tokyo would agree to provide non-combatant assistance to the United States in any regional conflict.
But by specifying "regional" conflict, its wording deliberately leaves vague the geographical scope, and this has China worried because Mr Hashimoto could not specifically rule Taiwan out of this "region," explains the paper.
"Any steps or suggestions that will put Taiwan under the scope of the security pact will not be accepted by the Chinese Government and its people," Li Peng told the prime minister.
( "Hashimoto warned on scope of security plans" )
As an aside, US papers seem particularly quiet about the whole matter, even about the mere fact of the review. The US government to its credit has made the entire process open, and has worked hard to keep Asian nations informed about its development. See the Far Eastern Economic Review's June 26, 1997 issue for background information. And see both the September 11, 1997 issue and yesterday's issue of China Informed for details on China's recent reaction to the pact.
At last, there is the present: if Japan finds itself tongue twisted, unable to form the proper words for China's ears, Beijing would appear quite comfortable to level its "ritual denunciations," as the South China Morning Post puts it, because such denunciations have been "effective in eliciting additional loans and investment from Tokyo," writes the paper. "It is a form of blackmail which both sides seem to find acceptable."
On Friday Mr Hashimoto announced a loan package for China worth some 202.9 billion yen. The loan is "the second-year portion of Tokyo's fourth set of low-interest yen loans to China covering a five-year period from fiscal 1996" and is "intended primarily to help with China's environmental protection and economic modernisation programmes," reports the paper. Japanese businesses are interested in China's environmental protection and energy projects.
In a report quoted by the China Daily, it was stated: "The next century's economic development decrees Japan will need China's abundant natural resources and huge markets, while China's economic takeoff calls for the help of Japan's capital and technology,"
Energy: two French companies to build power station in Guangxi Province
( Bangkok Post Sep 5, 1997 - French group lands $600m Chinese deal Build, own, operate, transfer pact unique ) The Bangkok Post reports, Electricite de France (EDF) and GEC Alsthom signed a 15-year agreement to build, own and operate a US$600-million coal-fired 720-megawatt power station in China's Guangxi Province.
Unlike other Build-Own-Transfer agreements, this once is the first fully foreign-funded one in China, reports the paper. Investment laws guaranteeing such arrangements, however, still do not exist, reports the paper.

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Sun, Sep 7, 1997	Sino-Japanese Relations history and fears about 'new world order' concern China and Asian countries also: NPC Chair Qiao Shi on the fall; Taipei wishes CCP well ; and French firms ink deal for Guangxi power . . . Qiao Shi: NPC Chair makes way for Zhu Rongji; party propaganda chief falls ( "Fate of NPC chief in the balance" ) The Hong Kong Standard reports that Qiao Shi, chairman of the National People's Conference, may be shuffled downward in the pecking-order to make way for up and rising vice-Premier Zhu Rongji. "Powerbrokers huddled in the Jingxi Hotel in Beijing on Sunday after an expanded Politburo Standing Committee failed on Saturday to decide the leader's fate," the paper writes. The whole affair is being viewed as a means for Jiang Zemin to consolidate his position, although Mr Qiao will retain his seat on the Politburo Standing Committee, the most powerful decision-making body in the country. In related news, the paper reports that Ding Guangen, 68, who headed up the party's propaganda department and who is "intensely disliked for his hardline views on the leadership of the party's propaganda machine," has been removed from his post. It would seem that Mr Ding spent part of his youth as a member of the Nationalist Youth League under the Kuomintang. The paper reports, "Revelations came in behind-closed-door meetings when a senior party official in Mr Ding's office spilled the beans on his boss' previous involvements with the communists' rivals, who now rule Taiwan." Taiwan: we left out a tidbit from yesterday's Taiwan coverage: (Taipei, Sept. 5) On the eve of the convention of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) 15th Congress, Taiwan said on Friday that it will be happy to see a successful conclusion of the congress. The CCP cabled its best wishes to the 15th National Congress of the Kuomintang (KMT) on August 25. Japan and China: the future as history ( "Hashimoto ends trip at Dalian hub" ) Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto ended his four day trip to China by touring Dalian, the industrial city in northeast China and a center of Japanese investment. The entire trip, replete with symbolic importance for Sino- Japanese relations, coincided with the 25th anniversary of the normalization of relations. All of this was deliberate of course, as Hashimoto arrived on Thursday wanting to commemorate this anniversary and then reorient each side's gaze toward the future which portends of greater Japanese involvement in the region's security. First, there was some unfinished history: In a meeting with Hashimoto, President Jiang Zemin told the prime minister, "Correctly understanding and treating history is an important premise for our two countries as we face the future," reports the China Daily. Jiang then reportedly warned Hashimoto about the 'bad effects' caused by those in Japan who 'deny history and hinder the smooth development of Sino-Japanese relations,' reported the paper. ( "History key to bilateral ties" ) Aiming to allay China's suspicions and concerns about the forthcoming US-Japanese defense pact, the prime minister promised "Japan . . . will never return to the path of militarism or become a military power." "Chinese officials expressed appreciation for his remarks," reported the South China Morning Post, "but said Japan had to prove its sincerity." Mr Hashimoto departed for Shenyang on Saturday and Dalian on Sunday. "The fact that I as Prime Minister am going to visit northeast China is to show that I am prepared to look history squarely and face the future," the South China Morning Post quoted him as saying. The symbolic importance of his trip to these city lies in that both served as bases of Japanese power throughout its long occupation during World War Two. It was in Shenyang where Japan orchestrated the ascension of China's last emperor as ruler of the puppet state of Manchukuo which, writes the South China Morning Post in an editorial, was "the scene of some of the worst atrocities of World War II." If Hashimoto intended to put the past behind him, he could not seem to find the magic words. He expressed his "deep remorse and heartfelt apology" for Japan's involvement in the war, but this was the exact phrase spoken by his predecessor Tomiichi Murayama in 1995. As the paper writes: "Mr Hashimoto made it clear he would not go further than the formula used by his Socialist predecessor who, though ideologically and temperamentally more inclined to remorse, was similarly constrained by domestic politics. A vocal minority of Japanese, particularly from Mr Hashimoto's party, still defend the country's wartime actions although, as the prime minister rightly pointed out to his host, the vast majority reject such views." The paper concluded, "Mr Hashimoto has made a brave effort, but as far as Beijing is concerned he has failed to convince or reassure.." And then there were the concerns for the future: as much as history per se stood at the center of China's attention, the review of the US-Japanese defense pact, now in the final stage and scheduled to be completed this month, ranked high on its list of concerns. As the South China Morning Post explains, "A key objective of Mr Hashimoto's visit is to sell a regional security approach which both tries to bring China into a new Asian order with Japan as the other key player and at the same time builds Japan's defence ties with the United States. Even the new Asian order is viewed with ambivalence in Beijing and elsewhere in the region because it clearly implies Japan's development as a military counterweight to China." As part of this new defense pact, Tokyo would agree to provide non-combatant assistance to the United States in any regional conflict. But by specifying "regional" conflict, its wording deliberately leaves vague the geographical scope, and this has China worried because Mr Hashimoto could not specifically rule Taiwan out of this "region," explains the paper. "Any steps or suggestions that will put Taiwan under the scope of the security pact will not be accepted by the Chinese Government and its people," Li Peng told the prime minister. ( "Hashimoto warned on scope of security plans" ) As an aside, US papers seem particularly quiet about the whole matter, even about the mere fact of the review. The US government to its credit has made the entire process open, and has worked hard to keep Asian nations informed about its development. See the Far Eastern Economic Review's June 26, 1997 issue for background information. And see both the September 11, 1997 issue and yesterday's issue of China Informed for details on China's recent reaction to the pact. At last, there is the present: if Japan finds itself tongue twisted, unable to form the proper words for China's ears, Beijing would appear quite comfortable to level its "ritual denunciations," as the South China Morning Post puts it, because such denunciations have been "effective in eliciting additional loans and investment from Tokyo," writes the paper. "It is a form of blackmail which both sides seem to find acceptable." On Friday Mr Hashimoto announced a loan package for China worth some 202.9 billion yen. The loan is "the second-year portion of Tokyo's fourth set of low-interest yen loans to China covering a five-year period from fiscal 1996" and is "intended primarily to help with China's environmental protection and economic modernisation programmes," reports the paper. Japanese businesses are interested in China's environmental protection and energy projects. In a report quoted by the China Daily, it was stated: "The next century's economic development decrees Japan will need China's abundant natural resources and huge markets, while China's economic takeoff calls for the help of Japan's capital and technology," Energy: two French companies to build power station in Guangxi Province ( Bangkok Post Sep 5, 1997 - French group lands $600m Chinese deal Build, own, operate, transfer pact unique ) The Bangkok Post reports, Electricite de France (EDF) and GEC Alsthom signed a 15-year agreement to build, own and operate a US$600-million coal-fired 720-megawatt power station in China's Guangxi Province. Unlike other Build-Own-Transfer agreements, this once is the first fully foreign-funded one in China, reports the paper. Investment laws guaranteeing such arrangements, however, still do not exist, reports the paper.

China Informed

a news service focused on China, Taiwan and Hong Kong
©1997 Matthew Sinclair-Day
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