Beijing - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said he wants to
lift China-Japan ties into a "new dimension" as he kicked off his
three-day visit to Beijing on Thursday, the first bilateral visit by
a Japanese prime minister in seven years.
"As problems that cannot be resolved by one country alone have risen,
the time has come for Japan and China to jointly contribute to world
peace and prosperity," Abe said, speaking at a reception marking the
40th anniversary of a treaty between the two nations, according to
Kyodo news agency.
Abe said China and Japan "are playing an essential role in economic
growth" in Asia, and that he was eager to lift the countries' ties to
a "new dimension," into a "new era."
Abe is set to meet with President Xi Jinping on Friday.
The two historic rivals have been pushed closer to each other under
pressure from the United States.
In anticipation of Abe's arrival, China's Global Times state tabloid
said the visit was a "landmark event that signals China-Japan
relations are returning to the right track."
Abe and Xi are to discuss various global and regional issues,
including North Korea's denuclearization. Xi and his wife will host a
state banquet for Abe on Friday evening.
Abe, who is travelling with a large business delegation, is likely to
propose new forms of cooperation between the world's second and
third-largest economies during his talks with Chinese Premier Li
Keqiang, at a time when China is mired in a bitter trade war with the
US.
Japan is also under pressure from US President Donald Trump to import
more automotive and agricultural products in an attempt to slash
chronic US trade deficits.
A better China-Japan relationship could afford Abe some "diplomatic
space" from the US and put him in a better position to defend Japan's
interests in discussions with Washington, said Jia Qingguo, an
international relations professor at Peking University.
During Li's visit to Japan in May, the two countries agreed to
cooperate on infrastructure projects in developing countries. The
move can be seen as a step by Japan to join China's "Belt and Road"
initiative to build transcontinental trade and infrastructure routes.
Japan said on Tuesday it had decided to discontinue its 40-year
official development assistance for China as the aid "has fulfilled
its role" now that the country has achieved economic growth and
development in technology, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga
told reporters.
The two countries' relations had frayed after Japan purchased
uninhabited islets, the Senkaku, in the East China Sea in September
2012. The islets are also claimed by China, where they are known as
Diaoyu.
China and Japan both know their dispute over the islets cannot be
solved in the short term and are choosing not to let it define their
relationship, Jia said.