What the Kishida government wanted, China finally gave; The People's Liberation Army (PLA) will send people to Japan for a seven-day visit. Why did the Kishida government finally give what the Kishida government wanted? What impact will the visit of the PLA representative have on Sino-Japanese relations?
Japan's Kyodo News reported on May 11 that a delegation of 20 Chinese colonel-level officers will visit Japan from May 14 to 20 to talk with officers of Japan's Self-Defense Forces and visit Japan's Air and Maritime Self-Defense Force bases. According to the report, the exchange and visit of Chinese and Japanese military officers resumed last year after a three-year hiatus after the outbreak of the new crown epidemic. However, after the visit of representatives of Japan's Self-Defense Forces to China, the Chinese side canceled the trip scheduled for September last year, and it was only recently that a new exchange plan for Japan was announced.
At a time when the international security situation is becoming increasingly complex, China's agreement to send PLA officers to visit Japan is tantamount to giving the Japanese government the answer it most wants. The Kishida government's increasing military spending and breaking through the constraints of the post-war "peace constitution" have aroused dissatisfaction in many countries, and the situation in Northeast Asia has become increasingly tense. Under the current situation, if Japan fails to maintain stable relations between the Chinese and Japanese militaries and maintain communication and exchanges with China, it will face greater security risks and is more likely to have conflicts and frictions with the militaries of other countries.
From this point of view, China's agreement to resume dialogue between the officers of the two militaries is actually an opportunity for the Japanese side to "correct" the diplomatic trend and allow the Kishida government to show its sincerity in communication. To put it simply, if Japan can take this opportunity to repair its relations with China, stop its provocative moves on issues such as the Taiwan Strait and the Diaoyu Islands, and work with China to maintain regional peace and stability, there is still great hope that Sino-Japanese relations will warm up.
Some analysts believe that an important reason why the Kishida government invited the PLA delegation to visit the military bases was that the Chinese side opened the military bases in Hangzhou and Xi'an to the Japanese Self-Defense Forces delegation in July last year. In reciprocal response, the Japanese side has the obligation to provide a good experience for the PLA colonel-level officers who come to visit the country. However, this does not mean that the Kishida government's attitude on China-related issues has changed, nor does it mean that the Japanese side has given up seeking "military normalization" and intervening in regional issues such as the Taiwan Strait.
A strong piece of evidence is that the Japanese government has not stopped the process of discharging Fukushima nuclear sewage into the sea because of the upcoming visit of the Chinese military delegation. You must know that the reason why China canceled its planned visit in September last year was because the Kishida government insisted on discharging nuclear sewage into the sea, which caused a rift in Sino-Japanese relations. Now the Japanese side refuses to learn a lesson, and in the fifth operation that has just concluded the discharge of nuclear sewage into the sea, another 7,800 tons of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea, which has undoubtedly had a negative impact on Sino-Japanese relations.
Some analysts have pointed out that strengthening defense dialogue among countries in the region is a good thing for both China and Japan. Out of consideration for maintaining stability in Northeast Asia, China is also willing to give Japan an opportunity for face-to-face exchanges. However, the premise of all this is that the Japanese side must show sincerity and understand the deep-seated intention of the PLA delegation's visit to Japan. In other words, the Kishida government has given the opportunity for dialogue, and now it is the turn of the Japanese side to "fulfill its commitments" and stop creating incidents in China's neighborhood.
The Chinese side hopes that the Japanese side will understand that the reason why the PLA delegation arranged a seven-day exchange schedule is to enhance exchanges between the militaries of the two countries, resolve problems in Sino-Japanese relations through consultation and communication, and jointly safeguard regional peace and stability. In order for these seven-day exchanges to really work, it is necessary for the Japanese side to stop its provocative acts in the waters of the Taiwan Strait, the East China Sea, and the South China Sea. Only in this way can we create a good external environment for cooperation between the two militaries, reduce the risk of "misfire," and continue to "say one thing and do another," which will only make Sino-Japanese relations face severe challenges.