Geo-Strategic Trend - 159. page

After talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi told reporters  that China regards Russia as an important strategic partner in building “The Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road” (also known as “The Belt and Road Initiative”) together.

Wang said that President Vladimir Putin recently visited China to attend “The Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation” and made an important contribution to the success of the Forum. China regards Russia as an important strategic partner to build the “Belt and Road” and believes that Russia will play a unique and irreplaceable role in the process.

Source: People’s Daily, May 27, 2017
http://world.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0527/c1002-29305091.html

Wang Jian, a scholar at the Institute of Modern History at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, published an article in the Japanese Journal (2017, No. 2 issue) titled, “The Evolution of Taiwan-Japan Relations in the 21st Century,” with the subtitle, “The Structural Contradictions between Taiwan and Japan and the Factors Impacting Future Trends.” The article pointed out that since the start of the 21st century, the relationship between Taiwan and Japan has undergone a series of changes. In Chen Shui-bian’s administration, there were frequent interactions in the political and security areas. The tendency toward “jurisprudential independence” made the Taiwan crisis even more prominent. After Ma Ying-jeou took office, he started the “flexible diplomacy” and initiated the “special partnership between Taiwan and Japan Year” program. The relations between Taiwan and Japan showed an upward trend which continued after the East Japan earthquake. Today difficult-to-reconcile structural contradictions between Japan and Taiwan still remain, including fishing rights in the Douglas Reef (Okino Tori Shima), the export ban on food from five Fukushima counties to Taiwan, and the Taiwan-Japan EPA negotiations. After Tsai Ing-wen came to power, the contradictions started to “intensify.” Taiwan-Japan relations gradually come down to the reality of interests from the too high “expectations” from the past. The factors affecting the relationship such as the Sino-U.S., Sino-Japanese, Japan-U.S. and the cross-strait relations are also being adjusted accordingly, but they will have more uncertainty. From the perspective of the Taiwan DPP authorities’ choice of foreign policy, the future relationship between Taiwan and Japan will be closer. Their alliance for common interests to compete against China’s mainland is still the biggest variable.

Source: People’s Daily, May 28, 2017
http://world.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0528/c1002-29305819.html

While the United Nations has passed a resolution to restrict North Korea’s coal exports, there have been reports that China allowed some North Korean ships to dock or to unload their coal in China’s ports. China’s spokesperson gave an explanation for two incidents.

Geng Shuang, spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on April 26, 2017:

Question: “According to what we know, six ships carrying coal from North Korea unloaded the coal in Tangshan port last week. This seems to contradict the Chinese government’s claim that China has not imported any North Korean coal since February 18. Could you please provide more information and explanation?”

Answer: “Due to the fact that some ships that carried North Korean coal were severely short of supplies, out of humanitarian consideration, China allowed them to unload the cargo. However that was not to allow its importation. Unloading and importing are two different things.”

Huang Songping, spokesperson for China’s General Administration of Customs, on April 13, 2017:

Lianhe Zaobao news reported that it asked about 10 North Korean ships that were allowed to dock at China’s port, which made observers wonder if (it meant that) China has not enforced the UN’s embargo.

Huang said that China’s Customs did not let that North Korean coal go through the import process. “Since China’s Customs did not allow the import, how to deal with the coal involved in shipping is something that is up to companies themselves to handle.”

Sources:
1. Sina, April 26, 2017
http://news.sina.com.cn/o/2017-04-26/doc-ifyepsra5643741.shtml
2. Lianhe Zaobao, April 14, 2017
http://www.zaobao.com.sg/znews/greater-china/story20170414-748310

On April 28, Huangqiu published an editorial article on the relationship between China and North Korea. Below is the translation of a few key points from the article.
1) The relationship between China and North Korea has gotten worse. Since King Jong Un became the top leader, there have been no meetings between the top leaders of the two countries. Even though a diplomatic exchange between the two remains open, little strategic trust is left and a serious communication barrier exists between the two.
2) As tension in the situation on Korean Peninsula is increasing, the relationship between China and North Korea could get worse. Pyongyang might openly criticize Beijing or make unfriendly moves. China should be prepared for this.
3) Some Chinese residents are concerned that, as the relationship between China and North Korea gets worse, China will lose its bargaining advantage with South Korea and the U. S. It will also miss the strategic shield in North East Asia. We should be aware that, at this moment, North Korea has a direct conflict of interest with China’s national strategic interest. In the long term, there is no doubt that China still has control over the relationship between these two countries. As long as North Korea gives up on nuclear weapons, these two countries can easily go back to the normal relationship that they had before. Beijing can encourage Pyongyang to loosen up on its attitude on nuclear weapons. However if Pyongyang keeps pushing the conflicts to the irrational edge, China has the ability to be in charge of the situation completely so as to protect China’s national security.
4) Frankly speaking, “double suspension” is the ultimate goal for China. China does not have much of a bargaining chip to pressure the U.S. and South Korea. We need to be very clear with the U.S. and South Korea that China is not the key party in resolving North Korea nuclear issues. China will not use the interest of the U.S. and South Korea to set its policy towards North Korea. The U.S. and South Korea should line up their thoughts close to ours rather than try to use theirs to overpower ours. Beijing wishes to find a common ground that benefits all party’s interests and advocacy. If this fails, the solution to the situation on the Korean Peninsula has to be put on table. China is not afraid of North Korea nor does it fear the U.S. and South Korea. We have enough power to fight back against any parties that will cross the red line of China’s national interest.

Source: Huanqiu, April 28, 2017
http://opinion.huanqiu.com/editorial/2017-04/10555354.html