Japan's policy over the Taiwan issue remains unchanged, and it is critical for Japan to deepen the cooperation with China instead of listing it as a threat, a Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman said Friday.

Hatsuhisa Takashima said what the Japanese and US high-ranking officials discussed in a security meeting held on last Saturday in Washington reflected the policy on security and the local issues Japan has been abiding by.

After that meeting, the two countries announced that one of their "common strategic objectives" across the Asia-Pacific region is to urge China to resolve the Taiwan issue peacefully through dialogue and to be more transparent about its military modernization.

The conference also addressed subject on the realignment of US troops stationed in Japan.

Japan' policy over Taiwan has not budged since the conclusion of the Japanese-Chinese Joint Statement in 1972, he said, adding Japan hopes the two sides across the Taiwan Strait could resume dialogue and work toward a peaceful solution.

Takashima noted that Japan expects to see more constructive and responsible performances by China in global affairs, and a closer relationship between Japan and China is beneficial to Japan itself as well as the world.

Stressing that Japan's foreign and defense policies and the notion on the Japan-US security alliance has not changed, Takashima said the common strategic objective just reconfirmed the long-standing policies and guidelines. The meeting neither made changes on Japan's defense policy, nor sought to establish a new type of Japan-US partnership.

At the Washington meeting, Japan and the United States reviewed issues about how to efficiently make use of the bases and the sharing of a certain base by the US army and Japan's Self-Defense Forces, which should not be interpreted that they were seeking a military integration, the spokesman said.

China has expressed "grave concern" over the joint statement of the United States and Japan listing Taiwan as one of their "common strategic objectives" in the Asia-Pacific region, saying that any "irresponsible remarks" on China's national defense is "untenable."

Calling the US-Japan security alliance "a bilateral scheme spawned during the Cold War period," China's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Kong Quan said it should not function beyond the bilateral framework.

"The Chinese government and Chinese people firmly oppose the US-Japan statement on the Taiwan issue, which concerns China's sovereignty, territorial integrity and national security," Kong said.
 
(Xinhua News Agency February 26, 2005)