Chinese commerce minister makes proposals to promote Sino-Japanese trade ties

Chinese Commerce Minister Bo Xilai made three proposals to boost the trade relations with Japan in the interview by Nikkei recently during the period of Sino-Japanese conference on the energy efficiency, according to Chinese Commerce Ministry.

Bo said that the two countries should create favorable political atmosphere for the bilateral trade and investment.

He stressed that China and Japan should have a future-sake vision for a long-run development of the bilateral trade relations.

He suggested that new cooperation fields be tapped, such as energy efficiency and environmental protection, and more potential with good prospect be boosted.

Bo Xilai said in the interview that the Sino-Japanese cooperation on economy and trade takes an important part in the foreign relations of either party. However, it has been affected by the weakened political ties.

He mentioned that the trade between China and Japan increased by only 9.9% last year, which is not only lower than the rise in the Sino-EU or Sino-US trade, but also 15% lower than the 25.7% growth in 2004.

The Sino-Japanese trade counted for 20% of China's foreign trade in 1994, while the percentage down to 13% in 2005 by 7%.

Bo said the difficulty between ties of China and Japan, as it was known to all, lies in the problem over the Yasukuni Shrine visits which hurt the feeling of people of victim countries including China, and undermined the political basis of the China-Japan relations. Yasukuni Shrine problem is an issue of both principle and feeling.

He reiterated Chinese government's pursuit for peace, friendship, reciprocity and win-win results. Chinese President Hu Jintao's speech in his meeting with the chiefs of the seven Sino-Japanese friendship organizations from Japan shows that Chinese government takes positive and sincere attitudes to the development of ties between China and Japan.

By People's Daily Online