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A few days after the demarcation of Chinese Air Defense Indentification Zone, Japan will enhance warning and surveillance capacity of its Self-Defense Forces (SDF) to ensure its national security, reported local media Wednesday, citing a draft of Japan's new defense guidelines.
The draft also said the SDF needs to beef up its ability to defend the country's remote islands based on rapid gathering of information, necessitating cooperation with U.S. forces in surveillance and warning activities, said Japan's Kyodo News.
The guidelines, which were built on an interim report by defense ministry in July, will be presented to Japan's ruling bloc that comprises the Liberal Democratic Party and its small ally of the New Komeito Party before cabinet approval, as the government seeks to finalize them, said the report.
The final version is expected to call for a review of Japan's self-imposed ban on arms exports and introducing high-speed, cannon-equipped maneuver combat vehicles, said Kyodo, quoting a government official.
The cabinet is expected to approve the guidelines in mid- December after the final version is settled, according to Kyodo.
In response to a series of hawkish moves of Tokyo,Chinese Ambassador to Japan Cheng Yonghua on Wednesday urged Japan to take sincere measures to improve its relationship with China.
Cheng made the remarks in a speech at a major hotel in the western Japanese city of Okayama, where more than 150 local politicians, business leaders and members from the local China- Japan friendship association as well as Chinese communities were in attendance.
During the speech, Cheng expressed high hopes in three areas in particular: peacekeeping, greater communications between individual people and more cooperation.
Cheng stated that China has consistently seen Japan as an important neighbor in the region, and that the two countries should step forward together toward the goal of long-term development that corresponds to the basic interests common to the peoples of both countries.
Concerning the diplomatic issue relating to the disputed islands in the East China Sea, the ambassador pointed out that both countries should cope with the matter through dialogue and coordinated action to achieve security while contributing to world peace together.
Meanwhile, he told attendees, citing an example from answers to a recent survey on the relationship between China and Japan, that more than 70 percent of both peoples replied that the China-Japan relation is "important," and Cheng noted that there are hopes for room to improve the current gloomy situation on all levels. Raising some concrete ideas, he proposed promoting grassroots communications, interregional interactions and greater interpersonal exchanges between people working in the media and press so that they can learn about each other's cultural differences.
The ambassador also underscored the importance of the bilateral economic relationship to further expand their ties in a mutually beneficial manner, saying that there are still potential trade opportunities between China and Japan that can provide their peoples with more prosperity to enjoy. "For example, potential business opportunities between the two may be seen in green industries and energy-saving technologies while demand in industries related to population aging can be common to both China and Japan," Cheng added.
