Shinzo Abe looks to meet Xi Jinping for first time on Apec visit to Beijing

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrived in Beijing yesterday on a trip aimed at thawing ties with China.

On the first leg of a three-nation tour, Abe arrived with his wife, Akie Abe, to attend the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) leaders' summit, where hopes are running high that he will meet President Xi Jinping on the sidelines.

Before leaving Tokyo, Abe told reporters that if face-to-face contact with Xi could be realised during the summit, which starts today and ends tomorrow, he would propose the establishment of a crisis-management mechanism to prevent accidental conflicts in the East China Sea, according to Kyodo.

"Japan and China, which have responsibilities for peace and stability in the international community, should go back to the original point of the strategic relationship of mutual benefit to develop relations," he said.

Ties between the two neighbours hit new lows in recent years as a territorial dispute over an island chain - known as the Diaoyus in China and Senkakus in Japan - in the East China Sea continues to escalate. The two leaders have not met since they took power in 2012, while high-level exchanges have been largely severed, prompting concerns that poor communications could lead to miscalculations.

But recent signs point to the increasing likelihood that Abe will finally meet Xi after repeated requests in the past two years. China and Japan's foreign ministers had their first formal meeting in more than two years yesterday in Beijing.