Foreign and Military Affairs
Beijing, Tokyo agree to seek better ties
By Wu Jiao (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-11-14 08:24
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 Chinese President Hu Jintao (R) meets with Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan in Yokohama, Japan, on Saturday Nov 13, 2010. [Photo/Xinhua] |
Chinese president attends APEC summit in Japan
YOKOHAMA, Japan - Beijing and Tokyo reached consensus on seeking to improve their strained bilateral ties as their top leaders met Saturday alongside a regional summit.
China and Japan should proceed with determination in the right direction for stronger bilateral ties, pushing for strategic and mutually beneficial relations along a healthy and stable track, Chinese President Hu Jintao said in a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan on Saturday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
It is the first time that the top Chinese leader met with the Japanese prime minister after months of territorial tensions between Asia's top two economies.
Hu said it serves the fundamental interests of the two peoples for the two countries to get along in peace, friendship and cooperation. He urged the two countries to take a strategic and long-term perspective and to observe the principles of the four important political documents: the joint statement in 1972, the Peace and Friendship Treaty in 1978, the joint declaration in 1998 and the joint statement this May.
Hu said both sides should work together to conduct human and cultural exchanges and to deepen mutual understanding and friendship.
China and Japan, as two important trade partners, should also increase dialogue and coordination in global affairs, get committed to the rejuvenation of Asia, and join hands to tackle global challenges, he said.
Kan said he completely agreed with the Chinese leader's views on bilateral ties, according to the Chinese foreign ministry press release.
Kan pledged to strengthen exchanges and cooperation between the two countries in every sector and to push for stronger bilateral ties.
The positive signals from the two leaders come after the relationship became strained over a collision between two Japanese Coast Guard patrol boats and a Chinese trawler on Sept 7 in waters off the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea.
Beijing suspended all high-level contact with Tokyo after Japan detained the Chinese trawler captain.
Premier Wen Jiabao and Kan last met in Brussels earlier in October in a hallway on the sidelines of a summit for Asian and European leaders. Both Wen and Kan had reiterated their claims on the islands during that time.
Later in the month, a long-awaited meeting between Wen and Kan failed to take place alongside a regional summit in Vietnam.
A senior Chinese official had said the breakdown was a result of the Japanese ruining the atmosphere by proclaiming their unjustified claim on the islands to other countries.
The continuous stress between the two countries put a spotlight on the possibility of a Hu-Kan meeting as the APEC summit takes place over the weekend - an event Hu has attended in person for the past few years.
It is the first time a top Chinese leader has visited the country since the September row.
World media had been speculating if the president would meet the Japanese premier on the sideline of the summit - with some reports even saying that the meeting had already overtaken the summit as top news.
China Daily
