Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi has met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo. Yang Jiechi says the trip is an important step toward creating better ties between the two countries. "We, Japan and China, are important neighbors. And we hope to reach out to Japan and promote constantly strengthening and developing the ties between the two countries." For his part, Shinzo Abe says he also believes the trip is a positive step. "I see this visit as a sign of the two nations" efforts to improve ties and I very much welcome that." Yang Jiechi is in Japan to co-chair a China-Japan high-level political discussion. Relations between China and Japan continue to be strained over territorial disputes in the East China and Japan"s legacy from World War II. UNESCO"s inclusion of documents related to the 1937 Nanjing Massacre into one of its lists has also become a new irritant. Japan has warned that it might halt funding for UNESCO over the move, prompting a strong retort from the Chinese side. |
