On April 3rd, 2004, Minister of Foreign Affairs of China Li Zhaoxing held talks with visiting Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi at the Diaoyutai State Guest Hotel. The two sides exchanged views earnestly and candidly on relations between China and Japan.

Li Zhaoxing said the mainstream of China-Japan relations is good. The two countries have maintained their political dialogue, sound economic cooperation as well as active civil friendly exchanges. Moreover, the two countries have enhanced coordination and cooperation in efforts aimed at promoting cooperation and stability in East Asia. The perceptions of different circles of Japan about the development of China have recently witnessed positive changes, signaling that the concept of bringing about a win-win situation between China and Japan has gone deeper into the hearts of the people.

Kawaguchi indicated that Japan-China relations are very important and exchanges between the two countries have been conducted stably at different levels in recent years and there has been increasing interdependency in the field of economy and trade between the two sides. Japan deems the development of China an opportunity instead of a threat. Enhanced cooperation between Japan and China is conducive to peace and stability of the region and the world at large.

As for the Taiwan question, Li Zhaoxing indicated that due to historical reasons, the government and people of China have been following closely the words and actions of Japan related to the Taiwan question. We demand that Japan not release any erroneous signal to the Taiwan authorities and to forces that attempt to forge "the independence of Taiwan".

When talking about the issue of history, Li Zhaoxing said that the repeated visits by Japanese leaders to the Yasukuni Shrine will only add to an increasingly heavy historical burden and will do no good to Japan and China-Japan relations. Japan should take history as a mirror, look into the future, and show its sincerity in dealing with this issue.

With regard to the issue of the Diaoyu Islands, Li Zhaoxing noted that the Diaoyu Islands and its adjacent islets have been China's territory since ancient time and China enjoys indisputable sovereignty over them. China and Japan have disputes on this issue and we insist, as always, to resolve the issue through consultations and negotiations.

Yoriko Kawaguchi expressed the stance of Japan on relevant issues. She indicated that the Japanese government does not support "the independence of Taiwan" and that the stance of the Japanese government prescribed in the 1972 Joint Statement between the Government of Japan and the Government of the People's Republic of China has not changed. She said that Japan has expressed its reflections on history on a number of occasions and this attitude has not changed either.

The two sides also exchanged views on international and regional issues of common concern.