Kong Xuanyou, incoming Chinese Ambassador to Japan, at a press event on Tuesday. Photo: Xie Wenting/GT

China is in no way the same as Japan was 30 years ago. Making compromises and concessions won't solve the problems, the incoming Chinese Ambassador to Japan Kong Xuanyou told a press event on Tuesday.The remarks were made in response to a question on the difference between the ongoing trade disputes between China and the US and the trade disputes between the US and Japan taking place three decades ago.Kong, who is currently vice minister at the Chinese Foreign Ministry and special representative of the Chinese government on Korean Peninsula affairs, said on Tuesday that the world is different from what it was 30 years ago. And China-US relations are different from Japan-US relations.China's Foreign Ministry said Kong will assume office as the new ambassador to Japan on Thursday, replacing Cheng Yonghua, who served as ambassador for nine years.Kong once worked as an office clerk at the Chinese consulate in Osaka from 1985 and 1989. In September 1985, Japan signed the Plaza Accord to ease the economic friction with the US and shrink Washington's budget deficit.Kong told the media that the Plaza Accord was a huge blow to the Japanese economy, and its influence continues to this day. Back then, Japan limited its automobile, electronics and semiconductor exports.

Kong Xuanyou. Photo: website of China's Foreign Ministry

Liu Jiangyong, vice dean of the Institute of Modern International Relations at Tsinghua University, told the Global Times on Tuesday that unlike the alliance between Japan and the US, in the China-US relations, China is in an equal position with the US.Unlike Japan, China has no need to make concessions to consolidate an alliance, nor does it need to compromise on trade issues to strive for time and give domestic companies a chance to survive trade frictions, Liu said.China can endure the US trade pressure because the country's 1.4 billion people are providing huge consumption potential, Liu noted.Chinese netizens also urged China not to make concessions to the US.They said that the US likes to use the national security threat as an excuse to suppress other country's advanced industry.Recently, an article headlined "How Japan lost the chip war 30 years ago" went viral on Chinese social media, which details how the US used this tactic to suppress the Japanese chip industry when it controlled most of the world market.The Chinese diplomat also called for cooperation between China and Japan to safeguard an open world economy and free trade system, stressing that East Asia can be a role model of cooperation on multilateralism.While China and Japan have some disputes, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said in 2018 that the two countries' relations had "fully returned to the normal track."Abe visited China in October 2018 and signed 52 memoranda of cooperation in a wide range of areas with China, the diplomat.com reported.Analysts said that while the US upholds protectionism and unilateralism, and starts trade disputes with other countries, China and Japan move closer as both countries uphold multilateralism.Kong said on Tuesday that China and Japan are the "beneficiaries" of a free trade system."China has noticed that the Japanese government has repeatedly pledged to uphold multilateralism and the free trade system. Both sides have clear common ground on this point," said Kong.US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose high tariffs on Japanese automakers."Japan will deal with China and the US based on its own interests, rather than being one-sided," said Lü Yaodong, director of the Institute of Japanese Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences."Japan cares about the benefits of multilateral trade and cooperation in third-party markets under the Belt and Road Initiative," Lü said.Lü told the Global Times that as Japan becomes an aging society where its consumption ability is comparatively limited, China's large market is important for the country."Ties between China and Japan also matter to regional and world peace and stability," Lü said.Amid the escalating China-US trade disputes, most Asian countries, including Japan and South Korea, are worried that their countries' economies would be affected.Liu noted to the Global Times that Japan and South Korea have a stronger need for an open and multilateral trade environment than China does, and it's not about picking sides, but taking action to protect their own national interests.Liu suggested that Northeast Asian countries seek cooperation at multilateral events, such as the upcoming G20 summit, because no matter what the US does, the need for multilateralism and free trade should be expressed and heard.For Kong, an important task after assuming the ambassadorship is to prepare for the G20 summit in Osaka, where the Chinese leader is expected to participate."We hope the outcome of the G20 summit in Osaka will send a positive signal to the outside world, and consolidate the confidence of the international community in maintaining the free trade system," Kong told the group of media.He expressed hope that this year's G20 summit could also touch on sustainable development and climate change.At the Tuesday press event, Kong also responded to a question on the Korean Peninsula.Kong told the Global Times that the peace process on the peninsula is encountering some difficulties, but that these are "temporary.""As long as North Korea and the US and other related parties can adhere to dialogue and show flexibility, the current difficulties are surmountable," Kong said. He noted that China will continue to play a constructive role in this process.