Washington, Sept. 26 (Jiji Press)–The U.S. White House has released a fact sheet on the results of Thursday’s summit with China, calling the Asian country a World War II ally in line with a recent remark by President Donald Trump. “The two leaders recalled that (the) United States and China were allies in World War II and fought side by side to win the war,” said the fact sheet on the summit between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. The paper was released Friday. Trump had referred to China as an ally during the war in a welcoming ceremony for Xi on Thursday. But the fact sheet also highlighted the importance of U.S. military bases in Japan, saying, “Since World War II, the United States’ forward military presence has preserved a Free and Open Indo-Pacific contributing to generations of American prosperity.” With this statement, Washington may have tried to show consideration for Japan even while it has taken a conciliatory stance toward China. At a dinner Thursday, Xi said that the people of China and the United States fought against Japanese militarist aggressors. A former senior U.S. government official described the remark as “a typical Chinese play to try to reach for some historical example where there was actually some kind of cooperation between the U.S. and China.” Trump, who wants to highlight U.S.-China ties, echoed Xi’s message. “I’m sure that Chinese friends would love to see this become a wedge issue between Washington and Tokyo. And I’m sure that Chinese friends would like to see these kinds of historical issues unnerve friends in Tokyo,” the former official said. “So, from that standpoint, you could argue maybe they’ve already succeeded by generating this controversy” with claims of U.S.-China cooperation in the war and criticism of Japan, the official also said. The Chinese forces that fought alongside the United States as part of the Allied powers in World War II belonged to the Republic of China, led by Chiang Kai-shek, not to the Communist forces of Mao Zedong, who founded the People’s Republic of China. The U.S. portrayal of the war as a joint move between the United States and China is likely to heighten concern that the Trump administration is going along with China’s view of history. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
