Protest against China’s detention of citizen, maritime action

TOKYO (AP)

Japan’s Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi protested in a meeting on Sunday with his Chinese counterpart the detention of a Japanese national in Beijing and raised “strong concern” about China’s escalating military activity near Taiwan and around Japan.

Hayashi is on a two-day visit to China, becoming Japan’s first diplomat to make the trip in more than three years as frictions grow between the countries. He also met Chinese Premier Li Qiang and top diplomat Wang Yi later on Sunday.

During his talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang, Hayashi demanded an early release of an employee of the Japanese pharmaceutical company Astellas Pharma, who was detained in Beijing last month over what the Chinese foreign ministry described as spying allegations. Neither side has offered further details about the man nor the allegations against him.

Hayashi told reporters he raised “serious concern” about China’s increasingly assertive activity in the East and South China seas, and stressed the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

He said he also expressed grave concern about Beijing’s increased joint military activity with Russia around Japan while Moscow wages war against Ukraine, and urged China to act responsibly for global peace.

Hayashi said he told Qin while there is a possibility of improving cooperation in economic, cultural and people exchanges, the two countries also face “many problems and serious concerns”, and that “Japan-China relations are currently at an extremely important phase”.

CONSTRUCTIVE RELATIONSHIP

The two ministers agreed to work together in achieving “a constructive and stable relationship” as agreed between their leaders in November, Hayashi said.

The sides agreed to improve communication in regional security, and welcomed the establishment of a defence hotline last week and the resumption of defence talks, Hayashi said.

Hayashi said that he and Premier Li shared the importance of their bilateral economic ties, and that it was crucial that Japanese nationals and companies feel safe to operate in China.

That was the concern raised by representatives of Japanese companies during their meeting on Saturday with Hayashi. They also sought transparent, predictable and fair business environment in China, said Yukiko Okano, deputy press secretary for the Japanese foreign ministry.

Separately, Hayashi told Wang that China’s assertive activity in the East China Sea and the recent detention are “a stumbling block for promoting economic and people-to-people exchanges”.

Despite close economic and business ties between the two Asian powers, Tokyo and Beijing have been increasingly at odds in recent years, as Japan considers China’s growing influence in the region a threat to its security and economy.