ABSTRACT
In the United States-Japan Joint Communiqué of January 13, 1965, President Johnson and Prime Minister Sato stated the China policy of their respective countries as follows: The President emphasized the United States policy of firm support for the Republic of China and his grave concern that Communist China’s militant policies and expansionist pressures against its neighbours endanger the peace of Asia. A sense of kinship is the third characteristic attitude of the Japanese toward China, and one that softens whatever sense of hostility may be caused by fear or disdain. Most Japanese refer to cultural affinity, racial similarity, and geographical proximity as providing the basis for a feeling of closeness toward China. The most common argument of the ‘progressive’ intellectuals who favour close ties with Communist China is that Japan mistreated China in the past and should now atone for its guilt.
