Developing | Beijing rolls out red carpet for Japan Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida
Beijing hints that Xi-Abe meeting is possible at G20 summit in Hangzhou
China has given a high-level reception to visiting Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, signalling Beijing’s sincerity in improving diplomatic ties with Tokyo.
Premier Li Keqiang, State Councillor Yang Jiechi and Foreign Minister Wang Yi yesterday met Kishida, who is the first Japanese top diplomat to visit to China in more than four years.
Chinese and Japanese media said the high-profile reception suggested that Beijing put its bilateral ties with Japan on the same level as the Sino-US relationship, despite their disagreements on political and diplomatic issues involving territorial disputes in the East and South China seas.
The diplomatic push comes as China prepares to host Group of 20 leaders, including Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, in September, offering the chance of a rare meeting with President Xi Jinping.
In their meetings, Li told Kishida, on his first visit to Beijing since taking up his post more than three years ago, that he hoped Sino-Japanese relations would return to a “normal track” as he saw signs of improvement in bilateral ties, but they were not yet strong enough, Kyodo News reported.
“I hope both sides reinforce a sense of responsibility, maintain the current momentum of improvement and undertake the task of putting bilateral ties on a normal track,” Li was quoted by Kyodo as saying.