Website part of effort to boost understanding

BEIJING - The Japanese embassy in Beijing has officially launched a micro blog, attracting more than 5,000 fans in just two days.

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According to Japanese Ambassador Uichiro Niwa, the micro blog will introduce his schedule as well as various activities related to Sino-Japanese relations.

"The general public is the important part of the bilateral relationship, and I hope the micro-blogging service will become a platform for communications between the embassy and ordinary Chinese people," the ambassador said in a statement.

This is so far the first micro blog opened by a foreign embassy in China.

The micro blog - officially launched on Tuesday - has posted a total of seven items including best wishes on Valentine's Day and gained hundreds of replies and comments.

As of Tuesday, fans of the embassy's micro blog had exceeded 5,000. Some viewers asked about the visa application process, and the majority were quite positive about embassy's efforts to interact with the public.

In recent years, both China and Japan have made greater efforts to promote mutual understanding and enhance each other's image among the general public in the two countries.

The Chinese embassy in Tokyo held its first regular monthly news conference at the end of last month, a move that reflected China's efforts to explain its policy and stances to the public in foreign countries.

Observers have stressed the importance of "public diplomacy", noting both countries have utilized various means to provide target audiences with information about their policies and general information.

Zhao Xinli, a fellow with Graduate School of Political Science of Tokyo-based Waseda University, said in an article that public feelings toward each other play a very big role in Sino-Japanese ties.

"How to overcome misunderstandings at the grassroots level is key to diplomatic work," he said.