China Urged Japan to Address Taiwan Issue in 1994: Records

Tokyo, Dec. 24 (Jiji Press)--China repeatedly urged Japan to address its concerns related to Taiwan ahead of then Japanese Prime Minister Morihiro Hosokawa's visit to China in March 1994, according to Japanese diplomatic records disclosed Wednesday.

Concerned about possible deterioration in Japan-China relations, Japanese diplomatic officials at the time advised the prime minister's side to give consideration to Beijing's anxiety, the records showed.

China is currently claiming that the Taiwan issue is the core of its core interests and has been criticizing Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's parliamentary remarks last month that China's possible use of force against Taiwan could constitute a so-called survival-threatening situation for Japan, in which the country could exercise its right to collective self-defense.

As of around 1994, China was tolerant of other countries engaging in economic exchanges with Taiwan but opposed them having official relations with the self-governing island.

Taiwan, however, increased foreign trips by high-ranking officials. In February that year, then President Lee Teng-hui visited Southeast Asia as a holiday trip, stoking a sense of crisis among Chinese officials.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]