China considers Taiwan to be a renegade province and has, in the past, threatened to use force to bring it to heel. The present Taiwanese government is following a more placatory path than its predecessors, vowing not to proclaim independence, not to demand reunification under its own system and not to use military forces.
Yet many in Japan believe that Beijing anticipates that luring Taiwan into a closer economic relationship will render the island increasingly reliant on the mainland.
"The Chinese Communist Party is cleverly seeking to get Taiwan by whatever means possible," said Yoichi Shimada, a professor of international relations at Fukui Prefectural University.
"Beijing has not abandoned its territorial ambitions," he said.
Why would Japan risk confronting China over Taiwan if Taiwan doesn't seem to think that China is a threat? China wants to conquer Taiwan despite the recent "peace" moves. And Taiwan could be pushing away allies who believe Taiwan doesn't want their help.
Which is probably what China is trying to achieve, of course.
