Chronologies

Japan - China

Chronology from Sep 2011 to Dec 2011


: Chief Cabinet Secretary Fujimura announces revision of the Three Principles on Arms Exports.

: PM Noda visits China and meets Premier Wen, President Hu, and State Councilor Dai.

: Minister of Defense Ichikawa Yasuo announces the government’s intention to revise the Three Principles on Arms Exports.

: Foreign Ministers Gemba and Yang confer by telephone on Korean affairs following the Dec. 19 announcement of the death of Kim Jong Il.

: Japan National Tourism Organization announces that November Chinese visitors increased 35 percent over November 2010, the first increase since March of this year.

: Kyodo News Service reports 1,000 Chinese workers strike over severance pay at Hitachi hard-disc factory in Shenzhen.

: Beijing requests postponement of PM Noda’s visit scheduled for Dec. 12-13.

: Foreign Minister Gemba visits Beijing to advance PM Noda’s December visit; he meets Premier Wen.

: Japanese Ministry of Defense reports six Chinese Navy ships transit Okinawa prefecture in international waters to conduct exercises in the Pacific Ocean.

: PM Noda and President Hu meet during APEC Leader’s Meeting in Honolulu; they agree to deepen mutually beneficial strategic relationship.

: Health Minister Komiyayama Yoko visits Beijing and asks for relaxation of Chinese restrictions on Japanese food imports.

: Japan Tourism Agency announces that Chinese tourists account for 17 percent of visitors to Japan in 2010, the largest percentage of foreign visitors.

: The Chinese fishing boat captain is released after paying 300,000 yen fine. Chinese Foreign Ministry accepts resolution of the issue as appropriate.

: Japanese lawmakers, including Nagashima Akihisa, special foreign affairs advisor to the prime minister, meet the visiting Dalai Lama; the meeting draws a protest from China.

: Chief Cabinet Secretary Fujimura tells the media that Japan will deal appropriately with the fishing boat incident in accordance with domestic law.

: Following a chase and collision, Japanese Coast Guard arrests captain of Chinese fishing boat operating in Japanese waters.

: Sankei Shimbun reports appointment of former Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan as Chinese head of China-Japan Friendship Society.

: Sankei Shimbun reports postponement of High-Level Economic Dialogue meeting.

: PM Noda tells Lower House that he does not intend to change the longstanding interpretation on the exercise of the right of collective self-defense.

: In a Financial Times interview, PM Noda expresses concerns with China’s maritime activities in East China Sea and South China Sea; he calls on China to respect international laws governing maritime activities.

: Chief Cabinet Secretary Fujimura Osamu tells the Upper House that the government plans to name 10 of Japan’s 49 unnamed islands to strengthen Japan’s EEZ claims.

: Chief Cabinet Secretary Fujimura reveals cyber-attack on Foreign Ministry and a number of diplomatic posts overseas; Yomiuri Shimbun reports that the viruses transferred data to servers in China.

: Japanese Coast Guard patrol boat spots two Chinese fisheries patrol boats operating in Japan’s contiguous zone in the Senkaku Islands.

: Speaking at Hyakuri Air Base, PM Noda expresses concerns with China’s stepped-up activities in waters off Japan.

: Minister of Trade and Industry Edano Yukio visits China, meets Premier Wen and Commerce Minister Chen Deming in an effort to advance economic cooperation.

: Japan’s Ministry of Defense sources report that in April-September period Air Self-Defense Forces scrambled 83 times to deal with Chinese aircraft approaching Japanese airspace – a three times increase over the same period in 2010.

: DPJ defense council urges the Japanese government to reconsider the Three Principles on Arms Exports.

: Japanese Coast Guard aircraft identify a Chinese maritime research ship operating without prior notification in area near the Senkaku islands.

: PM Noda and President Hu Jintao meet at the G20 Summit in Cannes.

: Prime Minister Noda meets Philippine President Benigno Aquino in Tokyo.

: Japanese Coast Guard aircraft spot a Chinese maritime research ship operating inside Japan’s EEZ near the Senkaku Islands.

: Foreign Ministers Gemba and Yang meet at the United Nations in New York.

: Chinese Foreign Ministry denies China is the source of cyber-attack on Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

: Cyber-attacks, attributed to China, hit Japanese government websites.

: Exhibition dedicated to Comfort Women opens at Anti-Japanese War Memorial near the Marco Polo Bridge; exhibition is co-sponsored by Japanese civic organizations.

: PM Noda tells the Lower House that calls from China and the ROK for the dis-enshrinement of Class-A War Criminals is interference in Japan’s domestic affairs.

: PM Noda, in policy address to the Diet, expresses concern with China’s growing power, lack of transparency, and stepped up maritime activities.

: Ambassador Niwa Uichiro visits Jilin province and inspects construction of the plant dedicated to destruction of remaining chemicals weapons abandoned by the Imperial Army.

: Japanese and Philippine officials meet in Tokyo discuss South China Sea and maritime safety issues.

: On the anniversary of 2010 Senkaku Incident, Chief Cabinet Secretary Fujimura Osamu reasserts Japan’s claim to sovereignty over the Senkaku Islands.

: Noda succeeds Kan Naoto as prime minister.

: Prime Minister (PM) Noda revises his position on Yasukuni Shrine and pledges that he will not visit the shrine.

Date Range