JUST ONE DAY after he concluded his first official visit to Beijing, Japan's Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida traveled to Thailand on Monday and emphasized that "it is important for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to demonstrate unity" toward China's maritime presence in the South China Sea. Haiwainet.cn commented on Wednesday:

That Kishida sought to lobby Southeast Asian countries to contain China on the South China Sea issue right after his visit to China, with which his country will expand cooperation in his words, is not a total surprise. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is just as capricious.

Although improving, the relations between China and Japan, as Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said during the meeting with Kishida over the weekend, are still "fragile", which requires both sides to work closely to recalibrate and improve their ties.