Abe continues to send mixed messages

TOKYO - The upcoming Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Beijing in November has been floated by numerous local media outlets Monday as an opportune venue for Japan and China to hold a summit.

However, whether the duo would use the platform to improve the soured relations stays unclear.

Tokyo had made illegal purchase of some of the Diaoyu Islands. And a number of other issues pertaining to history are casting shadow, exemplified by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visiting the contentious Yasukuni Shrine in 2013.

But whether or not the summit, which would be the first with Chinese leaders since Abe took office in 2012, comes to fruition, the onus of responsibility will still be on Abe and his ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) to take concrete steps towards improving relations that go beyond mere rhetoric and tackle some thorny issues squarely and honestly.

But as the recent-past dictates, for the hawkish Abe and his coterie of hard-nosed nationalists, facing controversial issues squarely, is hardly his, or their, forte.

"When it comes to foreign policy, we've seen a lot of gamesmanship from Abe and it's perfectly understandable why countries like China are becoming increasingly suspicious of Abe and his motives," political commentator and author Philip McNeil told Xinhua.

"Abe has consistently said he wants to rebuild relations with China and hold summit-level talks, but his actions continually seem to tell a different story," McNeil said.

He said Abe's recent trip to Latin America, which came just two days after Chinese President Xi Jinping wrapped up a tour to the region, was not solely about resource-poor Japan tapping into the region's rich resources, but also to sway diplomacy in the area as the Japanese leader has been doing on visits to 47 countries in the last 18 months.

"The timing is a little bizarre. Not only did the trip happen so soon after Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit, it was the first time in a decade a Japanese leader has visited the Central and South American region," said McNeil.

"I think it's safe to assume that Abe is looking to go head-to-head with China in the region economically, with Abe hoping to trade on Japan's cultural relationships with countries like Brazil, while at the same time pushing his agenda for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council," he said.

Japan and Brazil are both aiming to gain a permanent seat on the UN Security Council and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and Abe agreed that they would work together in this regard as the United Nations approaches its 70th anniversary next year.

Abe and Rousseff said their governments would, henceforth, seek to forge stronger ties with both Germany and India, with the aim of creating a "Group of Four" nations-body, to, ultimately, attempt to reform the Security Council.