Japan, Russia to sign peace treaty by 2000 (November 2, 1997)

KRASNOYARSK, Russia (CNN) -- The leaders of Russia and Japan concluded an informal summit Sunday with hugs and kisses -- and a pledge to work toward a Russian-Japanese peace treaty, nearly a half-century after World War II ended.

"This is a major breakthrough in relations between Russia and Japan," Russian President Boris Yeltsin told reporters after the so-called "no neckties" summit in this Siberian city.

"We had very serious discussion about a very complex problem, the issue of a peace treaty," said Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto.

The two leaders set a goal of resolving the issue by 2000.

I N C O N T E X T
Japan and Russia never signed a peace treaty to formally end World War II because of a dispute over four islands which Russia calls the Kuril Islands and Japan names the Northern Territories. Moscow occupied the islands towards the end of the war and still controls them. In 1993 both sides pledged to end territorial dispute by legal means.

Japan and Russia never signed a peace treaty to formally end World War II because of a dispute over four islands, known to Russia as the Kuril Islands and at to Japan as the Northern Territories. Moscow occupied the islands toward the end of the war and still controls them, though Japanese-Russian tension in the region has eased markedly in past years.

The two countries singed a document in 1993 to resolve the dispute by legal means, but both sides so far have refused to cede. Tokyo wants the islands back but Moscow fears a nationalist backlash if it returns them, according to political analysts.

CNN's Jill Dougherty presents an overview of the summit
2 min. 30 sec. VXtreme video


Yeltsin acknowledged that compromises on the issue were likely to be met by criticism in both Russia and Japan.

Yeltsin and Hashimoto also agreed on a six-point plan to boost Japanese investment in Russia, Japanese assistance to help Russia integrate its economy into the world economy, and Tokyo's support for reforms in Russia, as well as the training of Russian managers.

Among the projects discussed at the summit was a feasibility study for the construction of a pipeline to carry Siberian natural gas via Mongolia and China to Japan.

Observers said that the Krasnoyarsk summit had clearly shown the economic and geopolitical realities that were driving the diplomatic agenda.

Russia, rich in natural resources and showing signs of stabilizing after years of economic upheaval, is an attractive partner for Japan, which lacks resources and is seeking new markets for its products, as analysts point out.

Tokyo is also concerned about China's increasing economic and military clout in the Asia-Pacific region and about the risk of turmoil on the Korean peninsula, Russian commentators say.

"If Russia and Japan can seal a peace treaty by the year 2000, as hoped, that would dramatically change the geopolitical scenery in northeast Asia," Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman Nobuaki Tanaka said.

Yeltsin is scheduled to travel to China for a three-day summit next weekend as part of what is seen as Moscow's attempt to improve relations with key players in Asia.

Moscow Bureau Chief Jill Dougherty, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

Yeltsin in Beijing to boost partnership (November 9, 1997)

BEIJING (CNN) -- Russian President Boris Yeltsin arrived in Beijing on Sunday for two days of talks aimed at boosting trade relations. He will also sign a treaty with China defining the 2,800-mile eastern border that the two countries fought over for three decades.

"This is a big success. The border demarcation alone made it worth coming here," Yeltsin told reporters as he arrived in Beijing for his third visit in five years. The accord, however, does not cover certain contested territories.

Yeltsin and Chinese President Jiang Zemin are to sign the agreement Monday. On Tuesday, Yeltsin flies to the northeastern city of Harbin, which was a key base for anti-communist Russians in the 1920s and 1930s.


The meeting agenda
Historical highlights of Chinese-Russian relations
Treaty of Nerchinsk establishes formal ties in 1689

Both nations fight with allies in World Wars I and II

Soviets supply China's Communist insurgents with weapons and military training during 1946-49 civil war

Josef Stalin and Mao Tse-tung sign 30-year alliance in 1950

Border dispute begins in mid-1960s

Soviets begin military buildup along border in 1967

Soviets and Chinese re-establish positive ties in 1989

Source: 'China: A Nation in Transition,' published by Congressional Quarterly

With all but a few miles of their long-standing border dispute settled, Jiang and Yeltsin likely will focus on their nations' sagging trade relations.

The neighbors have had intermittent trade ties since the days of the Roman empire. But in the last few years, their degree of economic exchange has plummeted.

The volume of their bilateral trade is paltry, given the size of the two giants. Trade for 1997 is not expected to reach the anemic $7 billion they exchanged in 1996. By contrast, China says its 1996 trade with Japan reached $60 billion, and its trade with the United States reached $43 billion.

Since the decline of the Soviet Union, weapons have been Russia's primary exports to China. More than a billion dollars worth were sold to China last year.

Russia would like to agree with China on a giant project that will tie the two nations together economically for a significant period of time.

Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Boris Nemtsov arrived in Beijing before his boss in order to discuss 16 items with Chinese Vice Premier Li Lanqing, as the two worked to complete the agenda for Yeltsin's visit.

One option Russia plans to promote is a gas pipeline from Siberia to China and South Korea.

"So far we do not have a big enough project to become a kick-starter of practical cooperation. The $12 billion pipeline project may certainly become one," Nemtsov told reporters.

Another key summit topic is Russia's cooperation in building nuclear power plants.

'Glorious traditions of friendship'

Russia and China "have glorious traditions of friendship and common historical fates," Yeltsin told reporters last week. He added the nations have also benefited from "the bitter lessons of disagreement and the invaluable experience of cooperation."

For the most part, the nations have been friendly for centuries, with their formal ties dating back to 1689.

The expansion of the Russian border during the following two centuries would prompt leaders of the two empires to sign a series of border demarcation treaties. The border concerns would resurface nearly a century later, in the mid 1960s, and a series of skirmishes would stretch into 1989.

But with the exception of those three decades, their ties mostly have been close.

Both nations fought with the allies during both world wars. Their ties would peak following World War II, as Moscow fed China's civil war by supplying the Communist insurgents with a steady stream of weapons and military training.

After his rise to power, China's Communist leader, Mao Tse-tung, visited Moscow in 1950. There, he and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin signed a 30-year treaty of alliance aimed at presenting the United States with a united Communist front.

Friendship sours
Their partnership suffered a blow in 1959, when the Soviets withdrew their support for China's nuclear weapons program. By the 1960s, the Chinese and the Soviets were fighting over their border and disagreeing over the troubles in Vietnam.

By the 1970s, Beijing would snub Moscow in favor of Washington. For the next two decades, Chinese leaders would remain fickle, cozying up to which ever nation could do Beijing the most good.

By 1989, Chinese and Soviet leaders decided to again strengthen their ties. Mikhail Gorbachev traveled to Beijing in May of that year. His meeting with Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping was successful, though overshadowed by pro-democracy student demonstrations that turned deadly two weeks later.

The dismantling of the Soviet Union and the subsequent end of the Cold War troubled China, yet did much to force Beijing to reconsider its position in the world.

Relations between Russia and China have been boosted by their common view of a "multi-polar" world, meaning no single power should dominate.

Renewed cooperation
Ahead of Yeltsin's arrival, the Chinese touted the new cooperation with Russia along their shared border.

"The number of blockade runners, smugglers and drug dealers has sharply dropped thanks to concerted action by law enforcement agencies of the two countries," one Chinese official told China's Xinhua news agency.

Fanfare will consume much of Yeltsin's visit to China. China's state performing arts groups and media have made much to-do about his visit.

On the eve of Yeltsin's arrival, the China Broadcasting Chorus Troupe gave a concert of Russian folk songs as a "friendly gesture," the Xinhua news agency reported.

Yeltsin's pomp duties include the opening of an exhibition of czarist treasures. He'll also confer friendship awards on several Chinese artists and academics.

Correspondent Rebecca MacKinnon, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

China, Russia to hold joint war games in August 2005

Source: Reuters


BEIJING, Aug 2 (Reuters) - China and Russia will hold their first joint military exercises in August, involving nearly 10,000 troops, officials said on Tuesday.

The exercises, dubbed "Peace Mission 2005", will be held from August 18-25 in Vladivostok in the Russian far east, and in the coastal Chinese province of Shandong and nearby waters.

Defence officials in both countries were anxious to play down any threat to other countries in the region, saying the drills would work on ways to combat international terrorism and internal strife.

"We are not talking at all about North Korea or Taiwan, There were no such talks... so there is no occasion to speak about any third country," Russian General Vladimir Moltenskoi, deputy commander of land forces, told journalists in Moscow.

He said the scenarios included resolving ethnic strife and destroying "terrorists" at a coastal strip with naval forces.

Relations between China and Russia were strained by decades of mistrust during the Cold War, but the two nuclear powers have found much common ground in recent years and their military relationship has blossomed.

Russia is a major supplier of weapons to China, and both are leading members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation -- which also includes the Central Asian states of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

In July the organisation called for U.S.-led troops to fix a date to pull out of bases Central Asia, where Moscow has been concerned by what it sees as U.S. meddling in Russia's backyard.

China's official Xinhua news agency said on Tuesday the drills were meant "to deepen Sino-Russian mutual trust, promote mutual friendship and enhance the cooperation and coordination of the two armed forces".

The drills would also "help strengthen the capability of the two armed forces in jointly striking international terrorism, extremism and separatism", Xinhua said.

Russia's Moltenskoi said that scenarios include joint manoeuvres to cope with "ethnic splits, unrest and confrontations and resistance" to preserve order.

The large scale exercises will involve army, navy, air force, marine, airborne and logistics units, Moltenskoi said, adding that nuclear submarines and blanket bombing would not be used as the fictitious enemy did not merit such weaponry.