On Thursday, July 10th, Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. During the meeting, Japan pressed Wang Yi on five issues.
According to a statement released by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Minister Iwaya met with Wang Yi at 11:20 am during his attendance at the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Summit in Malaysia. The meeting lasted approximately 45 minutes. Iwaya put pressure on China in five areas, including the rare earth issue, Chinese military activities near Japan, the Taiwan Strait issue, Japan’s exports to China, and Japanese citizens detained in China.
In the meeting, Iwaya expressed serious concerns to China regarding its export control on rare earth and related magnets, believing this would have a significant impact on Japanese businesses. He strongly urged China to expedite the approval process for export permits.
Iwaya also showed concern about Chinese military activities near Japan. He expressed Japan’s serious concerns about the deteriorating situation in the surrounding seas and airspace, such as the situation in the East China Sea, including around the Senkaku Islands (known as Diaoyu Islands in China). He cited several incidents, including Chinese coast guard ships invading Japanese airspace with helicopters, a Chinese military aircraft coming close to a Japanese Self-Defense Force plane, the expansion of Chinese aircraft carrier activities, and China’s unilateral exploitation of natural resources in the East China Sea. The Japanese Foreign Minister strongly urged China to address these issues.
During the meeting, Iwaya reiterated Japan’s position on the Taiwan Strait issue, emphasizing the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait to the international community, including Japan, and noted that China’s large-scale military exercises near Taiwan are inconsistent with this goal.
Iwaya explicitly stated that Japan opposes any attempt to unilaterally change the status quo in the Taiwan Strait through “force or coercion.” Additionally, the Japanese Foreign Minister expressed grave concerns about the situation in the South China Sea.
The ongoing dispute between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea has escalated. The Philippines condemned China for attacking a Philippine supply ship with a Chinese coast guard vessel, leading to damage and injuries to Philippine personnel. China, on the other hand, blamed the Philippines for the dispute between the two countries.
Iwaya and Wang Yi also discussed issues related to China restricting the import of Japanese seafood and the resumption of Japan’s beef exports to China. Despite progress in these areas, including China announcing the resumption of importing Japanese seafood, Iwaya urged China to lift the remaining import restrictions on products from ten Japanese prefectures as soon as possible.
Iwaya also pointed out that the detention of Japanese citizens in China is one of the significant obstacles to improving people-to-people exchanges and mutual feelings between the two countries. He strongly urged China to release the detained Japanese citizens promptly.
Furthermore, the two foreign ministers also addressed the North Korean nuclear issue and the situation in the Middle East.
The statement from the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the meeting between the Chinese and Japanese foreign ministers did not mention the issues raised by Iwaya that China needed to resolve. Instead, it stated that China’s policy towards Japan has always been stable and consistent. China hopes that Japan will have an objective and correct understanding of China and uphold a proactive and rational policy towards China.
On the Taiwan issue, Wang Yi demanded that Japan “strictly adhere to” the provisions on the Taiwan issue in the four political documents between China and Japan.
Wang Yi also mentioned the anti-Japanese war and urged Japan to deeply learn from historical lessons.
According to reports from Kyodo News, while the Chinese and Japanese foreign ministers were meeting, the 11th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters of Japan stated that two Chinese coast guard ships continued to linger in the waters near the Senkaku Islands after entering Japanese territorial waters on Wednesday. This is the second consecutive day that Chinese official vessels have entered the waters around the Senkaku Islands and the 19th day this year.
The 11th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters revealed that both ships were equipped with deck guns, spreading China’s claims while attempting to approach Japanese fishing vessels. Japanese patrol ships instructed the coast guard ships to leave Japanese waters.
Furthermore, two additional Chinese coast guard ships carrying deck guns were confirmed in the contiguous zone outside Japan’s territorial waters.