YOKOHAMA — Chinese President Hu Jintao's acceptance of a meeting Saturday with Prime Minister Naoto Kan apparently reflects Beijing's desire to assuage anti-Japan feelings in the country and curb increased U.S. involvement in regional affairs, in particular in the East China Sea and the South China Sea.
Not mentioning U.S. obligations under its security pact with Japan to defend the disputed Senkaku Islands in case of foreign attack in an earlier meeting between Kan and U.S. President Barack Obama helped create an atmosphere for the talks in Yokohama. An absence of tough remarks recently by Japanese Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara against China also contributed.
But sensitivity over management of Japan-China ties remains, including renewed anti-China sentiment in Japan following the recent leak of video footage showing collisions in September between a Chinese fishing boat and two Japanese Coast Guard ships near the islands, which led to the arrest of a Chinese ship captain, who later was released.