Photo/Illutration Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands at the start of their meeting in Bangkok on Nov. 17. (Yosuke Fukudome)

BANGKOK--Prime Minister Fumio Kishida appeared satisfied after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Nov. 17, the first face-to-face talks between the leaders of the two nations in three years.

“This was a good start for creating a constructive and stable Japan-China relationship as well as for pushing along dialogue,” Kishida said after the 45-minute meeting.

Although Kishida raised a number of Japanese concerns, including Chinese military action near the disputed Senkaku Islands of Okinawa Prefecture, the two leaders agreed to seek closer communication regarding national security issues not only between themselves but at various levels among the two nations.

Kishida told reporters that a “frank discussion” was held on not only problem areas between the two nations but also on possible cooperation in the economic sphere and on climate change.

The novel coronavirus pandemic created a huge roadblock for bilateral meetings over the past three years.

In the meantime, the intensifying friction between China and the United States led to an escalation of military activity by Beijing, especially in relation to Taiwan.

Japanese government officials were hoping that Kishida’s meeting with Xi would serve as a catalyst for rebooting the bilateral relationship.

“By showing the prime minister meeting with Xi, Xi’s associates and other officials in China, where he has intensified his hold on power, will likely act through their interpretation of what he wants,” a high-ranking Foreign Ministry official said.

Kishida’s associates said they were most concerned about not having a channel of communications between the two leaders.

But the bilateral relationship is not expected to turn around immediately, given that China and the United States remain at odds over many issues, although Xi did meet with U.S. President Joe Biden in Indonesia on Nov. 14.

Government sources said that Kishida informed Biden in Cambodia on Nov. 13 about what he intended to say during his meeting with Xi.

While Kishida told Xi that peace and stability in Taiwan was important, he also urged the Chinese leader to follow international rules when extending loans to developing nations for huge infrastructure projects.

Kishida also brought up the Japanese nationals detained in China over spying allegations. He also asked Xi to lift import restrictions on Japanese farm products that have been in place since the triple meltdown at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in 2011.

(This article was written by Keishi Nishimura and Takashi Funakoshi.)

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