For the first time since China-Japan relations entered a diplomatic freeze last autumn, a lawmaker from Japan’s ruling party has held formal talks with a senior Chinese government official, offering a tentative sign that Beijing may be seeking to preserve economic dialogue even while political tensions remain unresolved.
Hashimoto Gaku, acting chairman of the Japan Association for the Promotion of International Trade (JAPIT) and a Liberal Democratic Party member of the House of Representatives who previously served as vice minister of health, labor and welfare, met Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Hua Chunying at the Foreign Ministry in Beijing on June 22 for roughly an hour. Speaking to reporters the following day, he described the encounter as “a major achievement” that had opened “a thread of exchange” between the two countries.
The meeting did not produce any tangible breakthroughs. Yet at a time when official and even semi-official contacts have become increasingly rare, both sides appeared eager to signal that dialogue itself retains value. Hashimoto said the talks confirmed a shared willingness to work toward improving relations, even if major disagreements remain unresolved.
The freeze dates to November 2025, when Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae addressed hypothetical Taiwan contingency scenarios during Diet testimony. Beijing reacted sharply and moved systematically to curtail bilateral exchanges, restricting travel to Japan, suspending Japanese artists’ performances in China, and tightening export controls on rare earth elements critical to Japan’s high-technology industries. Bilateral visits, whether between governments or not, largely dried up.
