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China media warn Japan over escalating
sea row
REUTERS , BEIJING
Tuesday, Sep 21, 2010, Page 1
¡§There must be a war between China and Japan. China must cleanse its past
shame.¡¨¡X comment on Global Times Web site poll
Chinese media yesterday warned Japan it risked intensified reprisals over a sea
dispute and claimed that many back military force to settle a long feud over
islands between Asia¡¦s two biggest economies.
China¡¦s government on Sunday suspended high-level exchanges and threatened more
steps after a Japanese court extended to Sept. 29 the detention of Zhan Qixiong
(¸â¨ä¶¯), whose fishing boat early this month collided with two Japanese coast
guard ships near islets claimed by both sides.
¡§China should have a set of plans in place to further sanction Japan, fighting a
diplomatic battle with Japan of successive retaliation,¡¨ said an editorial in
the Global Times, a popular tabloid that focuses on international news.
The newspaper also ran an online poll that it said showed 96 percent of
respondents backed armed force to settle the dispute over the islets, called
Diaoyutai (³¨³½¥x) by China and Senkaku by Japan.
¡§There must be a war between China and Japan. China must cleanse its past
shame,¡¨ one comment on the poll on the newspaper¡¦s Web site said.
Though emotions are running high in China over the issue, analysts say there are
no signs of it turning into a military conflict.
However, the angry rhetoric, including calls for a boycott of Japanese goods,
does mark a setback for efforts by both sides to ease distrust over wartime
memories and each other¡¦s militaries and rival claims in the East China Sea.
China¡¦s national youth association has postponed a plan to host 1,000 Japanese
youths in Shanghai this week, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said.
¡§The worst situation could be a worsening of political ties, such as canceled
meetings between top leaders. But I do not think there will be a direct impact
on bilateral trade. The two economies are too closely connected,¡¨ said Chen Qi,
a professor at Tsinghua University in Beijing who studies regional relations.
¡§I think it will be more or less a war of words, and everything will remain
under control,¡¨ Chen said.
Bilateral trade reached ¢D12.6 trillion (US$146.8 billion) in the first half, a
jump of 34.5 percent over the same time last year, according to Japanese
statistics.
On Sunday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu (°¨´Â¦°) repeated his
government¡¦s demand that Japan immediately release Zhan and said Tokyo would
face greater pressure if it did not. Japan urged China to stay calm over the
issue.
China has already called off meetings with Japanese officials, including planned
talks over disputed gas fields in the East China Sea. More snubs may follow.
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