Chinese warship to make first visit to Japan in post-war period
Aug. 30 (Bloomberg) -- A Chinese warship will dock in Japan this year, the first such visit in the post-World War II era, as the countries pledged more military exchanges during Chinese Defense Minister Cao Gangchuan's visit to Tokyo today.
The naval ship will visit in either November or December, a Japan Defense Ministry director, Yukinari Hirose, told reporters after Cao and counterpart Masahiko Komura met. A Japanese navy vessel will visit China at a later date, as will Komura, and the countries agreed to consider setting up a military hotline.
Cao's visit, the first by a Chinese defense minister since 1998, comes after Premier Wen Jiabao agreed with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in April to resume defense exchanges as the nations seek ``strategic, mutually beneficial relations.'' While relations have improved between the counties since Abe took power, Japan remains concerned about Chinese defense spending.
``Japan feels cautious about China's military buildup,'' said Tetsuya Nishimoto, who met Cao in Beijing in 1995 when he was chairman of the joint staff council of Japan's Self-Defense Forces. ``That's why it's very important to have a frank exchange of views.''
China's defense spending is at a five-year high of 350 billion yuan ($46 billion), 17.8 percent more than a year earlier, making it the fourth-largest defense budget in the world, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
That surpassed Japan's most recent budget of 4.8 trillion yen ($42 billion).
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