Chronologies
Japan - China
Chronology from Jan 2011 to May 2011
: Yomiuri Shimbun reports that Chinese authorities have approved transit from China of three North Korean refugees protected at the Japanese Consulate in Shenyang for over two years.
: China relaxes tourist restrictions to Japan with the exception of the northeast region of Honshu.
: Former State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan calls for China-Japan energy cooperation during China-Japan Economic Forum in Beijing.
: Japanese Embassy in Beijing holds open forum on the situation at Fukushima nuclear plant.
: Chinese newspapers carry an open letter of thanks from Prime Minister Kan to the Chinese people.
: Japanese independent panel concludes that captain of the Chinese fishing trawler involved in the Sept. 7 incident should have been indicted.
: Xinhua reports the second successful test flight of China’s stealth fighter.
: Prime Minster Kan calls Premier Wen Jiabao to thank him for China’s earthquake/tsunami relief contributions.
: Special advisor to Prime Minister Kan travels to China and transmits personal letter of thanks to President Hu Jintao for China’s earthquake/tsunami relief.
: China Security Report (English translation) is released by Japan’s National Institute for Defense Studies (NIDS).
: Kan government approves the 2011 Diplomatic Blue Book.
: China’s Foreign Ministry responds to Japan’s new high school textbooks that assert Japanese sovereignty over the Senkakus by reasserting that China’s claim is incontestable and efforts to try to change this reality will prove unavailing.
: Japan’s Foreign Ministry, citing earthquake emergency, announces decision to postpone consideration of ODA program.
: Xinhua reports China will impose tax on rare earth producers beginning April 1.
: Kyodo reports that Russian officials from Sakhalin have invited China to invest in an island located in Japan’s Northern Territory.
: Foreign ministers of Japan, China and South Korea meet in Kyoto. Foreign Minister Matsumoto thanks counterparts for their assistance in tsunami relief and recovery.
: Premier Wen Jiabao expresses sympathies for victims of earthquake and tsunami; China sends gasoline, tents, clothing, and foodstuffs.
: China dispatches emergency rescue team to Japan; team returns March 20.
: Ambassador Cheng calls at the Foreign Ministry and transfers funds for earthquake relief and recovery, citing Japan’s support following the 2008 Chengdu earthquake.
: An earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale hits the Tohoku region of Japan resulting in a massive tsunami.
: Matsumoto Takeaki is announced as the new foreign minister of Japan.
: Senior official of China’s National Offshore Oil Corp. tells Asahi Shimbun that oil is being produced in the East China Sea; China denies the accuracy of the report.
: Japan’s Ministry of Defense reports that a Chinese helicopter had buzzed a Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) destroyer in international waters in the East China Sea.
: China proposes cooperation to develop alternatives to rare earth metals.
: Foreign Minister Maehara resigns from his post.
: JCG ship observes Chinese Maritime Safety Administration patrol boat just outside Japanese waters and warns it against entering.
: Foreign Minister Maehara rules out the continuation of ODA for China.
: Japan’s Air Self-Defense Forces scrambles jets as Chinese aircraft enter Japan’s air defense identification zone.
: Deputy President of DPJ Sengoku Yoshito meets China’s Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun in Tokyo; Zhang invites Sengoku to visit China when time is appropriate.
: China-Japan Strategic Dialogue resumes in Tokyo.
: Japan’s Ambassador to China Niwa Uichiro calls for continuation of the Official Development Assistance (ODA) program for China.
: Sankei Shimbun reports that a Chinese company, Huawei Japan, has become a member of Keidanren.
: NEC Corp. announces agreement to cooperate with Chinese partner Tianma Micro in the production of liquid crystal display (LCD) units.
: Japan’s Supreme Court denies appeal for 150 million yen in damages filed by Chinese workers for being forcibly brought to Japan as laborers during World War II. Court cites the 1972 Joint Communiqué in which China waived rights of individuals to pursue damages.
: Asahi Shimbun reports there are more than 50,000 Japanese residing in Shanghai.
: Former JCG officer Masaharu Isshiki, responsible for the leak of JCG Senkakus video, speaks at Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan, expressing concern that foreign countries are invading Japanese territory.
: Yomiuri Shimbun reports that Japan briefed China on contents of Japan’s new National Defense Program Guidelines on Dec. 16, the day before public release of the document, to demonstrate Japan’s transparency.
: Japan’s Senior Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Banno Yutaka visits China, the first visit by a senior vice minister since the Senkaku incident.
: Foreign Minister Maehara makes policy address to the Diet.
: Japanese prosecutors drop charges against the captain of Chinese fishing trawler involved in the Sept. 7, 2010 incident.
: Beijing releases 2010 gross domestic product (GDP) data confirming that China is now the world’s second largest economy, surpassing Japan.
: China-Japan Security Dialogue is held in Beijing.
: Senkakus Day is celebrated in Ishigaki city, Okinawa.
: Prime Minister Kan Naoto reshuffles Cabinet; Maehara Seiji retained as foreign minister and Edano Yukio becomes chief Cabinet secretary.
: LDP’s Ishiba Shigeru introduces resolution calling on the government to take steps to assert sovereignty over the Senkakus, including landing on and surveying the islands.
: Former Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Secretary General Kato Koichi leads parliamentarian delegation to China and meets State Councilor Dai Bingguo and diplomat Wu Dawei, China’s lead negotiator in the Six-Party Talks.
: Taiwan’s Ministry of Transportation and Communication releases data showing that in 2010 China displaced Japan as top source of tourists to Taiwan.
: Nissan Corp. announces 2010 sales in China increased 35.5 percent over 2009 to 1,023,600 units. China is now Nissan’s largest market.
: Japanese government denies Ishigaki city government permission to land on and survey Senkaku Islands for environment and tax purposes.
: Honda Corp. announces 2010 sales in China increased 12.2 percent over 2009 to 646,631 units.
: China and Japan hold first antiterrorism dialogue in Beijing.
: First meeting of a Japanese government panel to consider strengthening laws to protect against disclosure of classified information by government officials. Strengthening of territorial sea law is also under review to allow Japan Coast Guard (JCG) to react swiftly to intrusions into Japan’s territorial waters.