From Dr Edward Vickers.

Sir, While I share Keiichi Hayashi’s hope that China will “calm down” and “stop bullying” (Comment, November 14), I fear his article is unlikely to contribute to this outcome. On the contrary, the state of official denial within Japan that his opinions reflect is crucial to understanding the cancerous condition of Sino-Japanese relations – of which the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands dispute is just one symptom, not the main cause.

Ambassador Hayashi claims that Japan has renounced militarism, has squarely faced its past and has made formal apologies to the countries concerned. However, the state of public debate within Japan entitles those countries to question whether the wartime past really has been confronted. It is outrage at continuing Japanese denial of that past that fuels popular anti-Japanese sentiment in China.