Tit-for-tat brinkmanship signals start of a lengthy chill

'Hu Jintao was really angry,' a Japanese diplomat reportedly said after the president's meeting with Tsutomu Takebe, the secretary-general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, and New Komeito Party secretary-general Tetsuzo Fuyushiba in Beijing on Sunday.

During the meeting, a solemn Mr Hu compared the development of Sino-Japanese ties with building a brick wall, warning that the wall could collapse 'in an instant' despite all the time and effort that went into laying the bricks.

A serious crack appeared in the wall the next day when Vice-Premier Wu Yi snubbed Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi by cancelling a meeting with him at the last minute, citing 'work demands' at home.

The abrupt cancellation was a well-calculated move to show Beijing's increasing anger and frustration at Mr Koizumi's repeated insistence that there is nothing wrong with his visits to Tokyo's Yasukuni war shrine.

Just a day before Ms Wu began her visit to Japan on May 17, Mr Koizumi cited Confucius to defend his shrine visits and said it was not right for countries to meddle.

He repeated his wish to visit the shrine on Friday, three days before he was scheduled to meet Ms Wu.

President Hu no doubt saw those remarks as a slight, particularly as Ms Wu was visiting Japan with a view to repairing strained ties.