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THE timing could not have been better judged. The Japanese destroyer Sazanami, with a crew of 240, docked at the south-eastern Chinese port city of Zhanjiang on Tuesday to a warm welcome by their hosts. The visit, reciprocating one made by the Chinese destroyer Shenzhen to Japan last November, came barely a week after the two countries agreed to jointly develop disputed gas fields in the East China Sea. Bilateral ties had already moved another step closer after Japan became the first foreign nation to send rescue workers to China in the aftermath of the May 12 Sichuan earthquake. In a further expression of heartfelt sympathies, the Sazanami bore gifts of blankets and emergency meals for the survivors.
The naval visits were in fact agreed to in 2000 as part of bilateral defence exchanges meant to foster mutual trust and confidence. But the port calls were delayed for several years when ties cooled over the visits by then Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to the infamous Yasukuni war shrine. The Sazanami's commander described his ship's visit, the first by a Japanese naval vessel since World War II, as a 'monumental milestone' for bilateral defence communications. Doubtless, it has brought relations to a new level. But it is premature and naive to assume the naval visits will bring the two countries closer together, security-wise. War-related allergies have yet to be wiped out, on both sides. Japan's past military aggression in China remains a sensitive issue. The Shenzhen was able to berth at a wharf near downtown Tokyo last year. In contrast, the Sazanami had to berth not at a naval base near Beijing, but at one over 2,000km away from the capital. Welcoming events were kept within the naval facility itself. Apparently fearing anti-Japan demonstrations, the Chinese cancelled a band performance by Japanese and Chinese sailors in downtown Zhanjiang at the last minute.
But even if they involve more form than substance, friendly exchanges can only be good for regional peace and stability. They are to be welcomed, no matter what manner they exhibit. That the naval exchanges have taken place at all is testimony to the determined effort by the current leadership of both nations to continue to improve relations visibly. The perennial question is whether Japan-China ties will unravel once again under different leaders. This is an unknown. The neighbours need to work hard to build a relationship that can weather the vagaries of leadership change.
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