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China, Japan sink deeper into diplomatic
feud
AFP, HANOI
A feud between China and Japan deepened at an Asian summit yesterday, as China
accused its rival of making false comments and hopes for landmark talks between
their leaders evaporated.
Asia¡¦s two big powers have been embroiled in their worst diplomatic row in
years, sparked by a territorial dispute that has escalated into protests,
scrapped meetings and allegations China is freezing exports of vital minerals.
All eyes at the East Asian Summit in Vietnam¡¦s capital have been on the sparring
match and whether the rival premiers, China¡¦s Wen Jiabao (·Å®aÄ_) and Japan¡¦s Naoto
Kan, would hold highly anticipated direct talks.
The prospects appeared good after Japanese Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara met
with his China counterpart early yesterday, saying they had agreed to improve
ties and that the two-way summit would ¡§probably take place in Hanoi¡¨.
But there was confusion later as the Japanese delegation announced the leaders¡¦
meeting would take place, and then shortly afterwards retracted its statement.
Chinese Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister Hu Zhengyue (J¥¿ÅD) then used extremely
strong terms to condemn Japan¡¦s behavior at the summit.
¡§Japanese diplomatic authorities have partnered with other nations and stepped
up the heat on the Diaoyu island issue,¡¨ he said, referring to disputed East
China Sea islands known as the Senkakus in Japan.
He said the comments had ¡§violated China¡¦s sovereignty and territorial
integrity.¡¨
¡§The Japanese moves, which is [sic] clear for everyone to see, have ruined the
needed atmosphere for a meeting between the two leaders. Japan should take full
responsibility for the result,¡¨he said.
China also voiced strong dissatisfaction over remarks by US Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton that the disputed islands fall within the scope of the US-Japan
security alliance.
¡§The Chinese government and people will never accept any word or deed that
includes the Diaoyu [Senkakus] Islands within the scope of the US-Japan Treaty
of Mutual Cooperation and Security,¡¨ foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu (°¨´Â¦°)
said in a statement on the ministry Web site.
The neighbors have been feuding since the Sep. 8 arrest of a Chinese trawler
captain after a collision with Japanese coastguard vessels near the disputed
island chain in the resource-rich East China Sea.
Kan¡¦s spokesman Noriyuki Shikata said there was no reason for ¡§heightened
tensions... between the two countries.¡¨
¡§I don¡¦t see the kind of basis for that kind of reaction,¡¨ he told reporters in
Hanoi. ¡§We are ready to engage in dialogue.¡¨
However, there was progress yesterday on another Asian faultline as Wen said he
would visit India this year and stressed there was ¡§enough space in the world¡¨
for the neighbors to prosper despite a backdrop of frosty ties.
Border disputes, a short war in 1962 and the presence in India of Tibet¡¦s
spiritual leader the Dalai Lama have all contributed to an atmosphere of
suspicion between India and China.
India is also wary of China¡¦s growing presence in the region, including
investments in ports in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.
However, Wen told his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh on the sidelines of the
summit that the two nations should ¡§steadily ensure friendship¡¨ and ¡§increase
mutual trust in politics.¡¨
¡§There is enough space in the world for China and India to develop themselves at
the same time, and there are enough sectors for China and India to cooperate,¡¨
he said.
The 10 ASEAN countries met yesterday with their dialogue partners before today¡¦s
16-nation summit which Clinton will also attend.
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