On March 5, Cui Tiankai, China's ambassador to Japan, was invited to speak to members of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (Keizai Doyukai) for the first time in the organization's history.

The invitation underlined the growing sense of urgency in Japanese business circles that Sino-Japanese relations need more constructive nurturing and positive developments than they have seen in the recent past.

After various ups and downs throughout 2007, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda appeared earlier this year to be building substantial positive momentum in improving the dialogue — that is, until it was revealed in late January that a number of people in Japan had fallen ill from pesticide-tainted "gyoza" meat and vegetable dumplings imported from China.

The incident quickly mushroomed from a few isolated cases to one of national importance, but the facts behind the reported illnesses remain unclear. Neither side has convincingly traced the cause of the contamination.

Meanwhile, many Japanese consumers have sworn off food from China, while some Chinese authorities have suggested the gyoza may have been deliberately sabotaged.

The political fallout has been significant. Chinese President Hu Jintao was scheduled to visit Japan sometime in early April, following a gushing invitation from Fukuda. But the gyoza scare was serious enough to warrant a delay in this trip to May 6.

The visit was to have been highly symbolic, as it would be the first by a Chinese president in 10 years, and was intended to mark the 30th anniversary of the Sino-Japanese peace treaty of 1978. But with both sides pointing fingers at the other, the situation has become temporarily ugly.

It is also essential to note things have changed a lot since 1978. Japan has become increasingly dependent on China. The overall shift in the two economies now means Japan has more to lose from problems with or within China than vice versa.

Japanese firms rely on the massive Chinese market and China's role in global supply-chain management for Japanese manufacturers has never been bigger. Dependence on food from China is also striking.

Japan has been unable to meet its own nutritional requirements for decades and is only able to produce 40 percent of the food it consumes; much of the rest comes from China.

With this fragile footing, Tomohiko Taniguchi, deputy press secretary of the Foreign Ministry, said, "We should not turn the gyoza poisoning incident into a political problem."

It is in the middle of this unresolved gyoza quagmire that China found itself in its own predicament. The recent violence in Tibet has captured international attention and condemnation. The incident began as Tibetan monks marched in an anniversary protest of the invasion by Chinese forces on March 10, 1959.

From the initially peaceful gatherings, the situation rapidly deteriorated to the level where Chinese armed forces were called in, and the resulting violence caused numerous fatalities — along with an international outcry.

Two weeks ago, foreign diplomats and reporters were finally given a tour of the situation to see it with their own eyes. Although the authorities tried to keep tight control over the event, disruptions by Tibetan monks confirmed the suspicions of many — that the crackdown was brutal.

The event has soured China's reputation worldwide, and many observers have been reminded of the vicious repression of the Tiananmen uprising of 1989. This is precisely the image China is eager to avoid, and its leaders viewed the holding of the Olympics in Beijing as a major step to overcoming this tarnished legacy.

And so it was that in reference to the Tibetan crisis, new Vice President Xi Jinping said, "I believe that we should successfully host (the Beijing Olympics) while adhering to the principle of not allowing the politicizing of the Olympics."

What is interesting to see is how China and Japan are both eager to avoid "politicizing" unpleasant topics. Indeed, the very term is something of a dirty word to both nations.

China and Japan are not countries known for their political systems. Indeed, stretching the argument one can even say they resemble each other in that they have been almost completely dominated by single party rule for more than 50 years.

But in the world of international relations, everything is political and it is naive to assume otherwise. The gyoza issue became political as soon as it was reported that the products came from China, and the Olympics have been political ever since 1936 and the Berlin Games. Or more recently, Moscow in 1980.

The European reaction to the situation in Tibet has been predictable. French President Nicholas Sarkozy would not rule out his country boycotting the opening ceremonies and European Parliament President Hans-Gert Poettering warned that a complete boycott could be justified if China does not enter negotiations with Tibetan leaders.

Japan has thus far cautiously avoided this kind of grandstanding. Considering its position as a country economically dependent on China, this was never an option. Businesspeople — and most politicians — understand this well.

Instead, the more plausible alternative for Japan in 2008 is to step up as a kind of silent ally to China during its time of crisis. Do not expect Japanese leaders to speak out or to call for boycotting the Olympics. The risk of further worsening relations is far too dangerous, with little to gain and much to lose.

In years to come, 2008 may be remembered as the year when Sino-Japanese relations flourished in the back rooms of business and political diplomacy. Japan's business leaders would very much like to see such an outcome, and will no doubt make utmost efforts to ensure political leaders from both sides get it right.

Jochen Legewie is president of German communications consultancy CNC Japan K.K.