Until the 16th century, when the first Europeans reached these shores, China had, for over 1,000 years, been the sole foreign influence on the development of Japanese culture. Some of this influence had been refracted through Korea, but Korea itself was in a position similar to Japan's: a recipient of overwhelming influence from its giant neighbor.
Buddhism and bureaucracy, Confucianism and kanji, along with countless otherarts and came to Japan from China. Recognizing this vast cultural debt is one way to improve relations between the two countries.
It was with this in mind that the late Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi worked hard to bring the extensive exhibition of Chinese treasures now at the Tokyo National Museum to the Japanese public.