The second executive committee meeting on the "9th Tokyo-Beijing Forum" was held in Tokyo on May 16th, with participation by approximately 30 members led by committee chairman Yasushi Akashi (chairman of the International House of Japan).

At this meeting, an official decision was reached for the 9th Forum to be held in Beijing on August 12th, the 35th anniversary of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship Between Japan and the People's Republic of China, and it was simultaneously agreed that efforts shall be made for this dialogue to be a step towards improved relations between China and Japan. These points have already been agreed upon on the Chinese side as well, beginning full-fledged preparations for the 9th Forum just three months ahead.

At the start of the meeting, Kudo, representative of The Genron NPO, reported on the preliminary consultation held in Beijing in early April. In this report, Kudo noted, "the participants confirmed that it is because bilateral relations are so strained that the 'Tokyo-Beijing Forum' must fulfill its role as a civilian dialogue" and expressed his desire to "address this dialogue with the same ideas asserted in the Treaty of Peace and Friendship Between Japan and the People's Republic of China that 'all disputes shall be settled by peaceful means.'"

Yuji Miyamoto, the former Japanese ambassador to China added that "the Chinese side also expressed their desire for positive progress led by civilian intellectuals."

Kudo then gave an explanation on the general outline and composition of subcommittees for the 9th Forum, proposing the need to pose a "Beijing Consensus (tentative title)" based on the spirit of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship to conduct the subcommittees through round-table conferences whenever possible and to explore dialogues for problem-solving together amongst both the Chinese and Japanese participants.

In connection to this, the committee vice-chairman Koji Tanami (Advisor of Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ), who also participated in the preliminary consultation in April, expressed his desire that this 9th Forum -- implemented at such an important time on the 12th of August -- be "a dialogue that widely transmits the message, to both countries as well as the world, that the various problems between China and Japan must be solved peacefully."

Lastly, the meeting ended with the note that the "Japan-China Public Opinion Poll," jointly conducted by both countries in conjunction with the Forum for the past 8 years, will be implemented this year as well. This was further followed by a confirmation that the worsened impressions and understandings of both countries towards one another must be appropriately recognized and adopted in the discussions at the Forum.

Next week, the members, led by chairman Yasushi Akashi, will pay a courtesy call to Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera and The Genron NPO will conduct civilian-based discussions for the stabilization of East Asian governance and advance the dialogue with China in preparation for release. Information will be updated and published on The Genron NPO's website at all times, so please check back on the site for more on the most recent information.