China-Japan Relations

The current China-Japan relations stand at a crucial point. The international relations at economic and political level between countries were stable when Prime minister of Japan Shinzo visit Beijing and meet the Chinese president Hu Jintao in 2006 October (Michael & Nick, 2007). The countries were sharing common strategic interests but since last 2 years, the International relations are becoming worsened and it has affected stability of East Asia and Japan's security.

Discussion

Conflict and Cooperation between China and Japan

In September 2010 after the arrest of the Chinese captain when fishing boat rammed a boat with Japanese coast guard, the relations between the two countries gets worse. We are seeing new anti Japanese demonstrations in China. Following the release of the captain and a meeting between the two Prime Ministers Wen Jiabao and Naoto Kan, tensions subside in October, and the Defence ministers of Japan and China agree to establish a connection in order to avoid further diplomatic crisis (Conrad, 2012). Nevertheless October 16, new demonstrations took place in China (Chengdu, Zhengzhou and Xi'an) and Japan (Tokyo), respectively involving several thousands of participants. A government survey conducted in October which found that only 20% of Japanese say they like China and 77.8% no. A level was not seen since1978 (Hilpert, 2002). In November 2010, the survey results Yomiuri Shinbun deteriorated markedly: 81% of Chinese would consider that bilateral relations are bad against 90% Japanese, 79% of Chinese thinking that Japan is not worthy of confidence and 87% were against the Japanese in China (Conrad, 2012).

The Emergence of Greater China

Since 2009, the Chinese Communist Party leaders seem to have adopted a harder line on the international scene, probably with the aim of political succession in 2012 (choice of 18th Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party). Japan shows a willingness to assert its interests in the region against China, more often denounced as a threat (Wing, 2005). Thus, as a result of the increase in naval activity near China's territorial waters, the Japanese Ministry of Defense decided in December 2010 to increase the number of submarines from 16 to 22 between 2011 and 2015 a record for the country, while reducing forces on Hokkaido, against Russia. In March 2011, China filed a complaint against the Japanese Ministry of Education because of textbooks with Japanese as the Senkaku Islands (Utpal, 2011). End of May 2012, a diplomat from the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo on suspicion of espionage and other illegal activities left Japan. First secretary of the embassy and former member of the Chinese secret service, he had previously refused to answer police came to question.