CORRECTED: China asks Japanese lawmakers to delay trip, likely over Lee's visa

Asian Political News, Jan 10, 2005

TOKYO, Jan. 5 Kyodo

China has asked a group of Japanese lawmakers who were scheduled to make a four-day visit to Beijing from Sunday to postpone their trip, the Diet members said Wednesday.

The lawmakers will seek an explanation Thursday from the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo in view of the possibility that the move may have resulted from Japan's allowing former Taiwan President Lee Teng-hui to visit despite strong protests from China.

According to a senior lawmaker, 12 members of the Liberal Democratic Party and the New Komeito party were to take part in the first bilateral ruling party talks with members of the Chinese Communist Party planned for next Monday and Tuesday.

The Chinese Embassy in Tokyo asked the lawmakers on Tuesday to postpone their visit, saying the Chinese have not been able to make sufficient preparations for the meeting in Beijing.

Fukushiro Nukaga, former LDP Policy Research Council chairman who was to head the delegation to the Chinese capital, said China asked for a postponement saying that the ruling party talks must produce results and that there are many themes to be discussed.

''I am surprised at the suddenness and I want to hear about their real intention,'' Nukaga said.

Lee made a weeklong visit to Japan until last Sunday after Tokyo granted him a tourist visa in December. Beijing has criticized the Japanese government for allowing Lee to travel to Japan.

The ruling party dialogue framework was proposed by China when Nukaga visited the country in January last year along with Kazuo Kitagawa, the current land, infrastructure and transport minister who was then policy chief of the New Komeito party.

In the talks, the Japanese delegation and senior Chinese Communist Party cadres were expected to exchange views on Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's visits to the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo and other historical issues as well as security and economic topics.