Japan - trying to rewrite history?(2)

However, this inflexible position has provoked a reaction from some rather more broad-minded individuals. While visiting China in January, the former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama acknowledged that there is indeed a territorial dispute with China over the Diaoyu Islands.

Before his visit to China, Natsuo Yamaguchi - the leader of "New Komeito" which is part of the Japanese ruling coalition - expressed the view that since the issue is difficult to resolve, it would be prudent to incorporate the wisdom of future generations in any discussions. This view was widely recognized as support for the idea that there is an issue, and that for the time being any attempt to resolve it should be postponed.

In response to the accusations leveled against him, Hiromu Nonaka said that current problems were precisely the result of the Japanese government's attempts to renege on the agreement to postpone the dispute.

Asked repeatedly by Japanese media if he would take back what he had said during his visit to China, Hiromu Nonaka responded that any such demand was unreasonable. He repudiated any suggestion that he was being "exploited" by China.

In 1972, during the process of normalization of Sino-Japanese diplomatic relations, and again in 1978, during the negotiation process on the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Japan and China, leaders of both countries reached a consensus that any attempt to resolve the Diaoyu Islands issue would be postponed. This is one of the keystones to the development of Sino-Japanese ties, and to peace and stability in East Asia, over the 40 years and more that have since elapsed.

Japan's provocative behavior on the islands dispute has already done serious damage to the basis of bilateral ties. If Japan refuses to reconsider its position and continues to distort the historical facts, such damage can only get worse - and Japan will find itself in an isolated position in the international community.

The author is Su Xiaohui, Deputy Director of International and Strategic Studies from the China Institute of International Studies.