Learn More about the Book
This book examines the careers of Liao Chengzhi and Takasaki Tatsunosuke, who were not only the architects of Sino-Japanese economic relations, but also pioneers of contemporary Sino-Japanese relations. Their visions and initiatives offer many insights into the current contentious relations among China, Japan, Russia, and the United States.
About the Book
Half a century ago, China and Japan signed the Memorandum Concerning Sino-Japanese Long-Term Comprehensive Trade. This accord is generally referred to as the LT Trade Agreement, an acronym for the co-signers: Liao Chengzhi (1908-1983), vice minister of the Foreign Affairs Office of the Chinese State Council, and Takasaki Tatsunosuke (1885-1964), former minister of the Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry. Liao and Takasaki worked out this landmark for Sino-Japanese relations in the face of Chinese radical ideologues and of the conservative Japanese government, ruled by the Liberal Democratic Party, an ally of the United States. The results changed history: the LT Trade framework not only institutionalized Sino-Japanese economic relations, but also paved the way for their diplomatic normalization. In this dual biography of two great politicians, Mayumi Itoh analyzes what they accomplished together and their effects on international relations from fifty years ago to today.
Review Quotes
1.
"In her meticulous and far-reaching analysis of the 1962 LT Accord, Itoh has constructed a compelling narrative of Sino-Japanese normalization by showing how the significant actors in this process, on both sides, were conscious of their responsibility to overcome the tragic legacy of the war."--Stephen Roddy, associate professor, Department of Asian Studies, University of San Francisco
2. "For a decade the two most powerful states in East Asia, Japan and the People's Republic of China, carried on trade without recognizing each other diplomatically and this beginning only a short time after the conclusion of the bloodiest war between them in all history, and while Japan had diplomatic ties with China's archrival regime on Taiwan. This marvelous new book tells the story of how such an arrangement came into being and the two men who made it possible, Liao Chengzhi and Takasaki Tatsunosuke (known together as 'LT' for short). Surprisingly little has been written in English about these two men and their accomplishments, and Mayumi Itoh's new work now admirably fills the void." Joshua A. Fogel, Canada Research Chair, York University "In her meticulous and far-reaching analysis of the 1962 LT Accord, Itoh has constructed a compelling narrative of Sino-Japanese normalization by showing how the significant actors in this process, on both sides, were conscious of their responsibility to overcome the tragic legacy of the war." Stephen Roddy, associate professor of Asian Studies, University of San Francisco
3.
"For a decade the two most powerful states in East Asia, Japan and the People's Republic of China, carried on trade without recognizing each other diplomatically and this beginning only a short time after the conclusion of the bloodiest war between them in all history, and while Japan had diplomatic ties with China's archrival regime on Taiwan. This marvelous new book tells the story of how such an arrangement came into being and the two men who made it possible, Liao Chengzhi and Takasaki Tatsunosuke (known together as 'LT' for short). Surprisingly little has been written in English about these two men and their accomplishments, and Mayumi Itoh's new work now admirably fills the void."
Joshua A. Fogel, Canada Research Chair, York University
"In her meticulous and far-reaching analysis of the 1962 LT Accord, Itoh has constructed a compelling narrative of Sino-Japanese normalization by showing how the significant actors in this process, on both sides, were conscious of their responsibility to overcome the tragic legacy of the war."
Stephen Roddy, associate professor of Asian Studies, University of San Francisco
4.
"For a decade the two most powerful states in East Asia, Japan and the People's Republic of China, carried on trade without recognizing each other diplomatically and this beginning only a short time after the conclusion of the bloodiest war between them in all history, and while Japan had diplomatic ties with China's archrival regime on Taiwan. This marvelous new book tells the story of how such an arrangement came into being and the two men who made it possible, Liao Chengzhi and Takasaki Tatsunosuke (known together as 'LT' for short). Surprisingly little has been written in English about these two men and their accomplishments, and Mayumi Itoh's new work now admirably fills the void."
Joshua A. Fogel, Canada Research Chair, York University
"In her meticulous and far-reaching analysis of the 1962 LT Accord, Itoh has constructed a compelling narrative of Sino-Japanese normalization by showing how the significant actors in this process, on both sides, were conscious of their responsibility to overcome the tragic legacy of the war."
Stephen Roddy, associate professor of Asian Studies, University of San Francisco
