The Eyes of the World are on Japan-China Relations
NISHIKAWA Megumi / Journalist
November 27, 2012
I was in Europe recently on business. In Spain I attended a symposium and exchanged views with businesspeople and fellow journalists from various countries, and in France I dined with scholars of international relations. And before I could broach any subject, people wanted to know my view on Japan-China relations.
In Europe, in a world apart from Asia, the Japan-China relationship was on everyone's minds. While I have been a long-time observer of Europe, this was the first time I encountered such interest. It was easy to see that all eyes were trained on the conflict between the world's second- and third-largest economic powers, and its implications for the regional balance of power and the global economy.
A senior member of a French research institute had an interesting opinion: "In China, some youth went out of control and destroyed Japanese supermarkets and restaurants. It was fortunate that no retaliatory incidents occurred in Japan. In the catastrophic earthquake that struck last year, the Japanese people demonstrated admirable self-restraint and maturity to the world, and they have again shown this national character. It had the effect of calming other Asian countries, and I think it also has a great significance for regional stability."
Emphasis on order and discipline, self-restraint, and perseverance. These national traits not only contribute to stabilizing Japanese society, but the entire region as well. The Japanese people did not lower themselves to the ranks of some rioting Chinese by retaliating in kind. And in his opinion, this bolstered confidence in Japan. It was the first time I heard someone speak of the Great East Japan Earthquake and the Senkaku Islands in terms of the "national character" of the Japanese people.
Incidentally, France shares a similar experience with Japan. Prior to the Beijing Olympic Games in 2009, human rights activists obstructed the torch relay in Paris to protest the Chinese government's oppression of the Tibetan people. In retaliation, anti-French demonstrations spread throughout China, and French supermarkets were attacked amid a consumer boycott movement.
As this researcher says, quite a few Asian countries must have felt relieved by the restraint shown by Japan in the dispute over the Senkaku Islands. All the same, they are undoubtedly monitoring the conflict between Japan and China with keen eyes. Particularly for countries locked in territorial disputes with China, such as the Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia, whether Japan manages to hold its own under Chinese pressure or be forced into retreat will have serious implications for their own future.
At present, China is concentrating its political and economic pressure on Japan, thereby alleviating the pressure felt by other countries. However, China may resume raising the heat in the South China Sea. And in such an event, the Philippines for one will not stand a chance if Japan had already succumbed to China over the Senkaku Islands.
Japan has the responsibility to collaborate with those countries and to take the leadership role in establishing the importance of maritime security based on rules and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas, while keeping up its resistance against Chinese pressure. The dispute over the Senkaku Islands is an issue that concerns not only Japan but the future shape of maritime order in East Asia as a whole.
Megumi Nisikawa is Expert Senior Writer on the Foreign News Desk at Mainichi Shimbun newspaper.
In Europe, in a world apart from Asia, the Japan-China relationship was on everyone's minds. While I have been a long-time observer of Europe, this was the first time I encountered such interest. It was easy to see that all eyes were trained on the conflict between the world's second- and third-largest economic powers, and its implications for the regional balance of power and the global economy.
A senior member of a French research institute had an interesting opinion: "In China, some youth went out of control and destroyed Japanese supermarkets and restaurants. It was fortunate that no retaliatory incidents occurred in Japan. In the catastrophic earthquake that struck last year, the Japanese people demonstrated admirable self-restraint and maturity to the world, and they have again shown this national character. It had the effect of calming other Asian countries, and I think it also has a great significance for regional stability."
Emphasis on order and discipline, self-restraint, and perseverance. These national traits not only contribute to stabilizing Japanese society, but the entire region as well. The Japanese people did not lower themselves to the ranks of some rioting Chinese by retaliating in kind. And in his opinion, this bolstered confidence in Japan. It was the first time I heard someone speak of the Great East Japan Earthquake and the Senkaku Islands in terms of the "national character" of the Japanese people.
Incidentally, France shares a similar experience with Japan. Prior to the Beijing Olympic Games in 2009, human rights activists obstructed the torch relay in Paris to protest the Chinese government's oppression of the Tibetan people. In retaliation, anti-French demonstrations spread throughout China, and French supermarkets were attacked amid a consumer boycott movement.
As this researcher says, quite a few Asian countries must have felt relieved by the restraint shown by Japan in the dispute over the Senkaku Islands. All the same, they are undoubtedly monitoring the conflict between Japan and China with keen eyes. Particularly for countries locked in territorial disputes with China, such as the Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia, whether Japan manages to hold its own under Chinese pressure or be forced into retreat will have serious implications for their own future.
At present, China is concentrating its political and economic pressure on Japan, thereby alleviating the pressure felt by other countries. However, China may resume raising the heat in the South China Sea. And in such an event, the Philippines for one will not stand a chance if Japan had already succumbed to China over the Senkaku Islands.
Japan has the responsibility to collaborate with those countries and to take the leadership role in establishing the importance of maritime security based on rules and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas, while keeping up its resistance against Chinese pressure. The dispute over the Senkaku Islands is an issue that concerns not only Japan but the future shape of maritime order in East Asia as a whole.
Megumi Nisikawa is Expert Senior Writer on the Foreign News Desk at Mainichi Shimbun newspaper.
The English-Speaking Union of Japan
日中関係に目を凝らす世界
西川 恵 / ジャーナリスト
2012年 11月 27日
最近、欧州に出張した。スペインではシンポジウムで各国の企業家や同業者と交流し、フランスでは国際関係の研究者らと食事を共にした。こちらが話題を振る前に、まず聞かれたのが「日中関係をどう見ているか」だった。
アジアから遠く離れた欧州で、日中関係がこれだけ関心を集めるのは欧州を長いこと見てきた私にも初めてのことだ。世界第二と第三の経済大国の対立が、地域情勢、世界経済に与える影響に目を凝らしているのがよく分かる。
フランスの研究所の幹部が興味深いことを言った。「中国の若者が暴走して日系スーパーや日本レストランを荒らしたが、日本で同様の報復がなかったことは幸いなことだった。昨年の震災で日本人は感嘆すべき自制心と成熟度を世界に見せたが、今回も同様の資質を見せた。これは他のアジア諸国を安心させ、地域の安定にとっても大事なことだと思う」
秩序と規律の重視、自制心、我慢強さ…。この日本人のありようは社会の安定のみならず、地域の安定にも資している。中国人の一部の暴走に、日本人が同じレベルに落ちて応酬しなかったことは日本への信頼感を増す結果になっているというのである。３・11と尖閣諸島問題を「日本人の資質」で括り、語られるのを耳にしたのは初めだ。
ちなみにフランスも日本と同様の経験をしている。２００９年の北京五輪前、中国政府のチベット人弾圧に抗議して人権活動家らがパリでの聖火リレーを妨害。この報復で中国各地に反仏デモが広がり、不買運動と共に仏系スーパーが襲われた。
この研究者が言うように、尖閣諸島問題での日本の抑制的な姿勢に安堵したアジアの国は少なくないだろう。ただ日中対立の行方を注視していることも、また間違いない事実だ。特にフィリピン、ベトナム、マレーシアなど、中国と南シナ海の島々の領有権問題を抱える国々にとり、日本が中国の圧力に抗して踏ん張るか、ズルズル後退するかは、自分たちの今後にかかわってくる。
現在、中国の政治、経済的圧力が日本に集中している分、他の国への圧力は減じている。しかし中国が再び南シナ海で圧力を高めた時、日本が尖閣諸島問題で腰砕けになっていたら、フィリピンなどは持ちこたえようがない。
日本はこれらの国々と提携し、中国の圧力に抗しながらルールに基づく海洋安全保障や国連海洋法条約の重要さを主導していく責務がある。尖閣諸島問題は一つ日本だけでなく、東アジアの海洋秩序のあり方にもかかわる事柄なのである。
（筆者は毎日新聞 外信部 専門編集委員。）
アジアから遠く離れた欧州で、日中関係がこれだけ関心を集めるのは欧州を長いこと見てきた私にも初めてのことだ。世界第二と第三の経済大国の対立が、地域情勢、世界経済に与える影響に目を凝らしているのがよく分かる。
フランスの研究所の幹部が興味深いことを言った。「中国の若者が暴走して日系スーパーや日本レストランを荒らしたが、日本で同様の報復がなかったことは幸いなことだった。昨年の震災で日本人は感嘆すべき自制心と成熟度を世界に見せたが、今回も同様の資質を見せた。これは他のアジア諸国を安心させ、地域の安定にとっても大事なことだと思う」
秩序と規律の重視、自制心、我慢強さ…。この日本人のありようは社会の安定のみならず、地域の安定にも資している。中国人の一部の暴走に、日本人が同じレベルに落ちて応酬しなかったことは日本への信頼感を増す結果になっているというのである。３・11と尖閣諸島問題を「日本人の資質」で括り、語られるのを耳にしたのは初めだ。
ちなみにフランスも日本と同様の経験をしている。２００９年の北京五輪前、中国政府のチベット人弾圧に抗議して人権活動家らがパリでの聖火リレーを妨害。この報復で中国各地に反仏デモが広がり、不買運動と共に仏系スーパーが襲われた。
この研究者が言うように、尖閣諸島問題での日本の抑制的な姿勢に安堵したアジアの国は少なくないだろう。ただ日中対立の行方を注視していることも、また間違いない事実だ。特にフィリピン、ベトナム、マレーシアなど、中国と南シナ海の島々の領有権問題を抱える国々にとり、日本が中国の圧力に抗して踏ん張るか、ズルズル後退するかは、自分たちの今後にかかわってくる。
現在、中国の政治、経済的圧力が日本に集中している分、他の国への圧力は減じている。しかし中国が再び南シナ海で圧力を高めた時、日本が尖閣諸島問題で腰砕けになっていたら、フィリピンなどは持ちこたえようがない。
日本はこれらの国々と提携し、中国の圧力に抗しながらルールに基づく海洋安全保障や国連海洋法条約の重要さを主導していく責務がある。尖閣諸島問題は一つ日本だけでなく、東アジアの海洋秩序のあり方にもかかわる事柄なのである。
（筆者は毎日新聞 外信部 専門編集委員。）
一般社団法人 日本英語交流連盟