ABSTRACT
China and Japan began to negotiate agreements on civil aviation, and fisheries. The legacies of the communist wars in Indochina in 1978-1979 have given the People's Republic of China new ammunition for its active diplomacy in Asia. Although China has long been a magnet for its Asian neighbors, it has no desire or ability to seek hegemony in Asia. China's diplomatic offensive in 1970-1971, after the Cultural Revolution, helped to enhance its image of reasonableness among its Asian neighbors, which had been disturbed by China's internal upheavals during the Cultural Revolution in 1966-1969. China objected strongly to a Japanese-South Korean agreement in 1974 for joint exploration and development of oil in the adjoining offshore area, ownership of which was still in dispute. China's experiences in the Indochina wars of 1978 and 1979 made the Chinese realize that since the Soviet Union currently has far better military capabilities, any military conflict in East or Northeast Asia will further Soviet expansionist designs.
