Proposals for Tracks I, II, III prepared by Tim Stoddard

Track I:

Unilateral:

• Yasukuni Shrine issue is important and change is possible. Japan could freeze official visits by top Japanese leaders to ease Chinese concerns.
• PRC support of Japanese Security Council seat would be met by Japanese concessions on other issues.
• ODA is outdated. Japan should initiate a “Joint Development Program” where China is an equal partner rather than a recipient of “charity”.
• U.S. policy evenhandedness and Japan reassurance on 2+2 is too difficult to achieve.
• Japan should readdress compensation issue for war victims.

Bilateral:

• Resumption of summit meetings is critical. CBMs, security meetings, and preventive diplomacy must be included in these meetings.
• Military movement is unlikely, but codes of conduct on security issues are possible.
• Global warming initiative is difficult to address, but an institution could be established to initiate this project– e.g.- Global Warming Joint Partnership.

Multilateral:

• NE Asia FTA dialogue must be initiated. Unclear of U.S. role.
• DPRK issue.
• Taiwan issue will be difficult, but encouragement of CBMs must be made.

Track II:

• Initial discussion of limitations of track II diplomacy due to political constraints.

• Need to take it as given that Track II initiatives can only really work if Track I is working.

• 1) What constitutes a Track II and where does it fit in the overall framework of cooperation.

We thought it wasn’t just sufficient to look at issues, but to also find way to elevate the Track II agenda to the Track I level.

That it is also important to have a downward channel to the Track III non-official sector, with potential to play in intermediary role.

• 2) Sites for dialogue. What would be the most appropriate format for a Track II dialogue and who would be included.

Thought it would be most beneficial on a small group basis, in which senior official could work in an unofficial capacity. It would have to be under Chatham House Rules, in academic settings. The point was raised that under this format there would be no duty to report findings, which would ease the openness of the dialogue.

AGENDA:

Energy.

· We discussed having an Energy Policy Dialogue between China and Japan, and the feasibility of including Taiwan. But it seemed that this would only be possible in the first instance on the basis of private sector involvement.

Environment.

· Similar to cooperation in the economic sector, there are challenges to environmental cooperation that need to be addressed. Common ground initiatives that have mutual benefit are most important, such as reforestation and pollution control. Ground-up initiatives that would have to be linked to the Track III dialogue were also stressed.

Economic Cooperation.

· Even under economic cooperation, there are still many challenges, such as trade security, the need to improve customs facilities, etc. The same caveat was made on environmental cooperation as well.

· Positive initiatives on the economic side would include sustainable development, local development institutions, agricultural credit, etc.

· In light of the Japanese ODA ending in 2008, how would such initiatives be funded? The model of the “Know How Fund” for economies in transition set up in Europe, which provides financial support for technical experts to offer support for economic institution building. This would need to be recipient driven.

The history project.

· Discussed the benefits of the project, which would provide a common sense of regional community. The limitation is that some of the nuances need to be suppressed in order for it to work. There was the idea that it would be beneficial to bring in different perspectives, such as European and American scholars to expand the dialogue.

· Also, on the issue of follow-up, a practical step would be to link up with Yomuri Shinbum. Alternatively, to have some kind of documentary produced by the NHK. There is also the idea of dealing with the history of modernization in both countries, and perhaps a project that looks objectively at the impact of Japanese aid to China.

Legal, Constitutional, Political Reform Framework

· We thought missing on the list was a framework for addressing legal, constitutional, and political reforms.

· There was a feeling that there was a lack of understanding of the constitutional issues in Japan, and likewise an insufficient understanding of the challenges of developing legal and political reform in China.

· There would be a need to bring legal professionals into the dialogue, which would also be useful in addressing historical and environmental issues as well.

What would be the most desirable (idealistic) objectives?

• Achieving a minimum consensus between China and Japan over the history question, and then shelving it.

• Creation of an East Asian Security Regime, which would incorporate energy, the environment, and economic issues.

• Acknowledgment of diversity and multiple interlinking of Track II dialogues.

• Corporate exchanges involving Taiwan, China, and Japan.

• Commitment from Track I for Track II diplomacy.

• The establishment of an East Asia Multilateral Environmental Forum.

• Putting politics aside and addressing the global environmental crisis and all its ramifications for the region.

• The point was made that this agenda could be seen as practical, incremental steps towards facilitating an East Asian Policy Forum.

Track III:

• Cooperation of mass media through joint T.V. programs.

• Less national influence on newspaper reporting--move to more local views/issues.

• Youth exchange programs (high school).

• Encouragement of positive images through entertainment industry including: “manga”, pop-stars, movie stars.

• Funding from academic circles/international organization.

• Bilateral exchange in education (language & history).

• ODA funding steered toward volunteer exchange (JICA).

• Non-governmental & independent surveys/opinion polls.

• 35th Anniversary of China-Japan Reconciliation and 2008 Olympics.

• Continue reconciliation workshops.

• Publish the outcome of this workshop’s proceedings. Publish the outcome from the Australian point of view.

• Joint exhibitions of art.

• Writing contests supported by private corporations or newspapers.

• Strengthening of city-to-city relationships. Launching of initiatives.

• Creation of a database which documents all the current activities and initiatives dealing with reconciliation.

• On-line reconciliation site giving users access to historical documents and photos.