Mistrust remains despite China-Japan security talks: envoy
Thaw in relations brings return to dialogue between China and Japan, but a lack of trust is an obstacle to progress, envoy says
A lack of trust remained despite a thaw in relations between China and Japan ahead of security talks this month, Beijing's envoy to Japan said on Friday.
Cheng Yonghua said he hoped the two nations could boost mutual trust through talks, which have been disrupted over the past year amid a territorial dispute between the two countries over islands in the East China Sea.
The two nations will exchange views about military and security policies this month, Cheng told reporters on the sidelines of the annual meeting in Beijing of China's main political advisory body, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.
Foreign ministry spokesman Hua Chunying said Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Jianchao would in late March visit Japan for the security talks and South Korea for "diplomatic dialogue".
Japanese news agency Kyodo reported on Thursday that Japan would explain its self-defence policies to China, but would also demand that Beijing increase transparency about its military budget and the development of aircraft carriers.
China and Japan are locked in a dispute over the sovereignty of the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea, known as the Senkakus in Japan.
Relations are also strained amid allegations by Beijing that the Japanese government has not fully atoned for crimes committed by Japanese forces during the second world war.
High-level talks between the two nations were suspended after Tokyo announced it was nationalising its control over the Diaoyu Islands in 2012.
Relations have thawed slightly since President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met in Beijing in November, when the two nations vowed to increase dialogue.
Cheng said two meetings between officials from the two nations were held in January, one of which was about maritime security.
The path for improving ties was still "fragile" because of the lack of trust, with Japan still expressing fears about China's military development, he said.
Cheng did not say whether China would invite Abe to attend a military parade in Beijing in September to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of second world war, but he said Japan should reflect on the past.
"Japan should use the anniversary to tell the international community it has made deep reflections on history," he said.
Additional reporting by Connie Lau and Kanis Leung