Press
September 29, 2022 is the 50th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between China and Japan. Fifty years ago, China and Japan broke the ice and opened a new chapter in the history of Sino-Japanese relations. In the past 50 years, although Sino-Japanese relations have gone through ups and downs, the two countries have still achieved fruitful results and achieved considerable development in various fields; Today, 50 years later, as the world's second and third largest economies and neighboring countries with a strip of water, "cooperation" and "competition" are bound to become the key words in Sino-Japanese relations. Standing at the crossroads of history, China and Japan must look back not only to the past, but also to the future, in order to usher in a new era of China-Japan relations amid the turbulent international situation.
At this important moment, Shenzhen Satellite TV Direct News invited Ikan, a commentator of the Japan-China Friendship Association in Osaka Prefecture, to accept an exclusive interview. As a Japanese civil person who has been committed to promoting the friendly development of Sino-Japanese relations for many years, Iguan will continue to tell the "Chinese story" to the Japanese people, and uphold the concept of "invigorating the turbulence and promoting the clear", hoping to make them realize "Real China", thus discarding some misunderstandings about China. In his view, although the so-called "China threat theory" has misled many Japanese people, as long as they continue to work hard, more people will realize the importance of friendly cooperation between China and Japan.
Telling the "Chinese story" with a "Japanese voice" is inseparable from Yiguan's in-depth understanding and grasp of Chinese society and Chinese political thought, as well as the strong friendship he has established with the Chinese people. During the interview, we unexpectedly learned that he had received a thank-you letter from the Chinese people for helping the disaster-stricken areas in China, and it is still hanging in his home, which shows how much he cherishes this friendship. For him, although Sino-Japanese relations are facing many challenges, the friendship between the two countries is still the general trend, and his work is of great significance. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, China has made great strides in economic and social development, its comprehensive national strength and international influence have been significantly enhanced, its achievements in poverty alleviation have attracted worldwide attention, and people's living standards have been continuously improved. For the great achievements China has made in the past few years, Iguang should be very impressed. He noted that the basic idea of China's poverty alleviation policy is not "give a man fish", but "teach a man how to fish". Fish refers to specific income, food, etc., but poverty alleviation is not to distribute these things to them, but to Let people learn how to get food and income. "Teaching a man how to fish" is an important feature of poverty governance in China.
He believes that the Chinese people use China's ancient wisdom to achieve the goal of "eliminating poverty" in the United Nations' 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda 10 years ahead of schedule. He said that the leadership and demonstration of the Chinese Communists played a huge role. He was very moved to see young Chinese Communist Party members go deep into impoverished villages, such as using solar panels to generate electricity, using computers and the Internet to sell local specialties, so that the villagers have made huge profits and successfully lifted the village out of poverty and become rich. .
Iguan wants to think that for Japan and many countries around the world, China's concept of creative development, which contains oriental philosophy, is very advanced. Because China's status quo is based on the basic spirit rooted in the harmonious integration of Eastern civilizations. China is developing in the form of common prosperity, which is the embodiment of this spiritual development. He believes that China's development model is beyond the scope of the country, but a larger concept. The concepts of "One Belt, One Road" and "a community with a shared future for mankind" are the same.
There are complex historical issues between China and Japan, as well as new issues arising in recent years. Iguan wants to believe that the Japanese need to truly understand and understand the developing China, and seek the right way to get along, because this is also related to the future development of Japan. He is very opposed to a fallacy in Japanese society. That is, when some people in Japanese society see the rise of China, they will reflexively generate a kind of arrogant logic, saying that China is hegemonism, expansionism, or imperialism. Iguanyao believes that it is the responsibility of the Japanese to develop a correct understanding of China, which is also his commitment to spreading the principles of Japan's development.The original driving force of the concept of advancing with the times combined with China's development.
China and Japan are separated by a strip of water, and they are neighbors who cannot move. Since 2007, China has been Japan's largest trading partner, while Japan is China's third largest source of foreign investment. Iguan wants to stress that Sino-Japanese friendship is the highest security guarantee for Japan. He is very familiar with Sino-Japanese economic and trade data. He said that 24%-25% of Japan's foreign trade is with China, the second is the United States, which may be much lower, at around 15%, and then the countries after It's less than 10%. For Japan, confrontation with China, its largest trading partner, should be said to be "suicide." So apart from Sino-Japanese friendship, there is no other option. Moreover, Sino-Japanese friendship is very important to the regional and global security situation, and to Japan, it means the highest security.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between China and Japan, and both countries have held some celebrations. Iguan should believe that this is an opportunity for the two countries to maintain a good momentum of cooperation. External pressure has a great impact on China-Japan relations, and hegemonism and unilateralism are not actually in Japan's interests. He believes that the US hegemony wants to contain a rising China, and if Japan joins the US, it will also increase its own risks. Japanese society is very clear that the United States is trying to "encircle" and then "decouple" China, but this is unrealistic, because the world economy and politics will be unsustainable. The United States must also realize that the era of one power and dominance is over.
The world has entered a new period of turbulent change, and the evolution has been accelerated with great changes unseen in a century. Iseki wants to see whether Japan chooses to be part of the tide of change or as a tool to maintain the old order dominated by some major powers. This is a question worthy of Japanese pondering. Promoting Sino-Japanese friendship is undoubtedly Japan's door to the transformation of a new model, and Japan's road to the future. He emphasized that this is a development path that Japan should choose. Therefore, he hopes to promote Sino-Japanese friendship through his work, and hopes that Japan can embark on the road of peaceful development under the background of "community with a shared future for mankind" and participation in the "Belt and Road".
As a member of the Osaka Prefecture Japan-China Friendship Association, Iseki has devoted himself to China-Japan friendship in various ways over the past decades. In the interview, he talked about many stories about his connection with Chinese ideology and culture and Chinese society. The Chinatown in Nanjing-cho, Kobe, Japan is very famous, and he has visited or eaten many times. In the 1980s, Chinese films were still rare in Japan. Ikan organized a Chinese film viewing party in Keihanshin, Osaka, and a large-scale viewing event with more than 1,000 people in Kyoto. It left him fond memories.
Yi Guanyao also talked about what happened when he set up a business in China in the 1990s. In July 1999, Jianli County, Hubei Province suffered a severe flood disaster in the Yangtze River basin. At that time, he donated 10,000 yuan for the reconstruction of primary and secondary school buildings in Jianli County. The letter of thanks from the Jianli County People's Government to him is still hanging in Yiguan's room.
