Defense ministers from Japan, China inaugurate hotline to avoid clashes, build trust

By MARI YAMAGUCHI
Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) — The Japanese and Chinese defense ministers have inaugurated their long-awaited hotline as a step to build trust and improve communication. It comes at a time when Japan and other neighbors are concerned about Beijing’s increasingly assertive military activities. Tokyo and Beijing are embroiled in a dispute over tiny Japanese-controlled islands in the East China Sea. China’s naval fleet also regularly circles around Japanese coasts, sometimes in joint military exercises with Russia. Japan’s Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said candid communication between the sides is necessary especially when their relations are not as good.