According to Nikkei Asia, the election of the leader of the Japanese ruling party Liberal Democratic Party , scheduled to be held on September 29, has attracted great interest from observers from all over the world, including China. But the position of Japanese prime minister is not the only issue in this election. The Chinese government is also worried about the influence of the pro-China heavyweight Liberal Democratic Party secretary Toshihiro Nikai in the party.
Toshihiro Nikai, Secretary General of the Liberal Democratic Party
Officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China often explain to our reporter: "Toshihiro Nikai has always kept his promises. He is very special to China."
Toshihiro Nikai can be said to be The most trusted Japanese politician in China. He inherited the network of contacts established by Tanaka Kakuei in China. In 1972, when Kakuei Tanaka became the prime minister of Japan, he normalized diplomatic relations with China. Whenever there is a problem between the two countries, Toshihiro Nikai is the solver of the problem. Before the new crown epidemic, he was a frequent visitor to China and could get in touch with the top leaders of China.
When the Foreign Affairs Department of the Liberal Democratic Party passed a resolution in July 2020 calling for the cancellation of the official visit of the Chinese state leader to Japan, Toshihiro Nikai made a famous accusation of this behavior that is still being talked about.
Toshihiro Nikai said at the time: "Who planned it? I don't care whether it was the head of the foreign affairs department or other department heads, but this matter cannot be decided so hastily." At his insistence, the wording of the resolution was watered down.
Now Toshihiro Nikai is facing opposition from his own party.
Former policy chief Fumio Kishida (Fumio Kishida) once stated that party executives other than the president should be re-elected for up to three consecutive terms for a one-year term. This proposal closed the door for Nikai Toshihiro's re-election, who has served as the secretary general for five years.
Fumio Kishida
Yoshihide Suga Before announcing that he would not run for president of the Liberal Democratic Party, he also discussed the possibility of succeeding Toshihiro Nikai. Many young Liberal Democratic Party members are dissatisfied with Toshihiro Nikai’s dictatorship of the party management.No matter who becomes the next party president, he is unlikely to continue as the secretary general.
China, which is in confrontation with the United States, hopes to maintain good relations with Japan. Toshihiro Nikai has been suppressing hard-line views of China within the Liberal Democratic Party. If he leaves, it will be a blow to China.
Kamo Koki, a professor of Chinese political science at Keio University in Tokyo, said: “China believes that Japanese politics has once again entered an era of multiple changes of prime ministers in a short period of time.”
Between 2006 and 2021, there were 6 prime ministers in Japan. , The tenure of each person is only about one year. In 2012, Democratic Party of Japan Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda nationalized Diaoyu Islands , and Sino-Japanese relations fell to an unprecedented low.
Japan's new prime minister hot candidate-Taro Kono
China wants to maintain a healthy relationship with Japan to resist the United States, so it does not want to go back to that era. However, Chinese leaders have determined that the political turmoil in Japan will continue for some time and are reassessing their strategy for Tokyo.
As domestic politics becomes more worrying, China's foreign policy will inevitably become tougher. The United States is putting pressure on China on the Taiwan issue and the human rights issue in Xinjiang. China has no room for compromise with the United States. China may also take a tougher stance against Japan, which is deepening its relations with the United States.
China's huge market is vital to the Japanese economy, and the Japanese business community is very worried about the future of China-Japan relations. However, the concept of separation of politics and economy will no longer apply in China.
How will Japan get along with neighboring China? There needs to be an in-depth discussion on the upcoming Liberal Democratic Party elections.
.
