It's not China alone. There is one more Asian country with which Japan is gearing up to celebrate -- albeit with much less fanfare -- the 30th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties this year: Mongolia.
According to government officials, a party will be held at a Tokyo hotel on Feb. 21 to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Japan's diplomatic ties with the pastoral country of only 2.4 million people, kicking off a series of anniversary events planned throughout the year.
On Feb. 24, 1972, Japan established diplomatic ties with Mongolia, seven months before it did the same with China, Mongolia's leviathan southern neighbor.