The Japanese and Chinese defense ministers inaugurated their long-awaited hotline on Tuesday as a step to build trust and improve communication at a time when Japan and other neighbours are concerned about Beijing’s increasingly assertive military activities.
Japan’s Defence Minister Yasukazu Hamada and his Chinese counterpart, Li Shangfu, talked for about 20 minutes through the hotline for the first time since it was established on March 31, the Japanese Defence Ministry said.
The two ministers welcomed the start of the operational use of the hotline and affirmed the importance of “the maritime and aerial communication mechanism,” which includes the hotline, in building trust between the two sides while avoiding contingencies.
Tokyo and Beijing have been long embroiled in a dispute over tiny Japanese-controlled islands in the East China Sea, known as the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China.