Zhou Mingwei, president of the China International Publishing Group (CIPG), recently gave the media an interview concerning the development of the Beijing-Tokyo Forum in the next decade.

Zhou Mingwei, president of the China International Publishing Group [File photo]

The Beijing Tokyo Forum which will usher in a new decade is expected to break the bottleneck of the troubled relations between China and Japan, enhance mutual trust and explore new talks.

According to Zhou, initiated in 2005, the Beijing-Tokyo Forum has become an influential non-governmental forum that has the longest history between the two countries.

Its agenda has gone beyond the topics that media concerns to other topics including diplomacy, trade, commerce, media, cultural exchanges, security and defense.

Despite the vicissitudes of bilateral relations in the past 10 years, which has posed great troubles and challenges for the two countries, the forum has played an important role in reaching a consensus between the peoples of the two countries, providing opinions to each government for policy making, guiding media reports and promoting mutual understanding.

The Sino-Japan relations have soured in recent years, raising the question whether the forum should be continued and how we host it in a better way.

The CIPG has been selected by high-ranking officials and celebrities of the two countries to be the Chinese host of the forum that focuses on breaking through the obstacles of bilateral ties, forging a mutual understanding and exploring new valuable topics concerning either side.

The first round of discussion starting from a new decade:

The 11th Beijing-Tokyo Forum hosted for the first time by the CIPG has begun a new decade of operation since its first establishment in 2005.

The CIPG has made wide connections with the Japanese audience through its publications and online services during the past 60 years. The CIPG has a number of seasoned professionals who know Japan well. The CIPG is fully confident in hosting the forum on the basis of the general landscape of bilateral ties as well as Sino-Japan relations and shouldering historical missions.

Speaking of the highlights of the upcoming forum, Zhou said, meetings and communication between the heads of the two countries as well as the efforts made by the officials and grass-root efforts have ushered in new opportunities for the two countries to improve their relations.

The delegations from a variety of Japanese classes have paid visits to China since February of this year, contributing to the improvement of the mutual understanding of the two countries.

One of the most impressive visits was led by Toshihiro Nikai from the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan, who organized a delegation with 3,000 members from business, financial and cultural spheres. They met with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing and listened to his keynote speech. Their visit signaled one of the greatest efforts made by the two sides to improve bilateral ties.

The forum this year will focus more on the communication, making the efforts an everlasting force in improving the bilateral relations between China and Japan.

The last forum reached a consensus that contained four principles, which laid a solid political foundation for future forums.

This year, the forum will address four major topics: bilateral political and diplomatic relations, the new engine of bilateral trades, the bilateral media and cultural exchange for the enhancement of mutual trust of the two peoples, and the measures taken to control the disputes and accidents so as to create positive elements for the long-term, stable and sound development of the two countries.

The forum's poll on the Sino-Japanese relations has entered a key phase as fundamental jobs are proceeding smoothly. The forum has designated keynote speakers and other preparations are ready.

Promoting communication, reaching consensuses and enhancing mutual trust

The forum this year possesses huge significance as this year marks the 70th anniversary of the victory of China's resistance against Japanese aggression and the world anti-Fascist War.

The speech delivered by Xi at the V-Day parade mentioned the word "peace" for 18 times. The commemorative activities have brought to the forum many new topics regarding the development of Sino-Japanese relations.

Zhou proposed four points for the role of the forum.

First, the Beijing-Tokyo Forum should be a platform for voicing for bilateral political relations, business, trade and cultural exchange as well as grass-roots communication between the two peoples.

Second, the forum should deepen the mutual understanding, fondness and political trust, pushing forward the long-term and healthy development of bilateral relations. The political mutual trust is an important basis for historic and sovereignty issues. Despite their sensitivities, those issues should not be ignored. One of the major topics of the forum is to improve communication between the two peoples and build political mutual trust.

Third, how to hold a correct view about the influences caused by China's rise so as to smoothly interact with the economies both of China and Japan as they have been increasingly connecting with each other. Valuable proposals are in need for this particular issue among the two countries.

Fourth, the forum is expected to be featured in the headlines of various media outlets so as to lead public opinion, making media a positive role to contribute to the stability of bilateral relations.

Zhou pointed out that the amendment of the security law in Japan has garnered wide attention from the Japanese people. Their voice shows a widespread, deepened and relative concern over the issue of peace. They made their voices for peace heard by the Japanese politicians as well as the international community.

Close attention is being paid to the Japanese government's attitudes on how to maintain victory and the world's order after World War II and how to respond to the call of the Japanese people who desire for peaceful circumstances.

According to Zhou, cooperation between China, Asia's largest economy, and Japan, the second largest economy in the region, will not only have a great impact on the two countries, but also on the economy of the Asia and the entire world. In a community of shared destiny, cooperation begets mutual benefits while confrontation leads to losses on both sides.

Zhou believes the forum will help to inject wisdom and energy into the improvement of bilateral relations.

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