Japan and China yesterday entered the second and final day of high-level talks aimed at easing strained bilateral ties, with the end of Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's controversial tenure in sight.
Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Dai Bingguo (
The specific agenda for the talks yesterday between the East Asian neighbors was not immediately made public.
But the two sides were believed to be discussing ways to improve their ties frayed by Koizumi's repeated visits to a Tokyo shrine which honors Japanese war dead, including World War II leaders condemned as war criminals.
It was the first bilateral meeting at the vice minister level in four months since the Japanese premier made his annual pilgrimage to Yasukuni Shrine in October, sparking off protests in China and South Korea.
The Japanese side was reportedly seeking a resumption of contacts between Koizumi and Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤), as well as their foreign ministers.
But Beijing is strongly opposed to any top-level bilateral exchanges because Koizumi -- who has promised to step down in September after more than five years in office -- refuses to stop his shrine visits.
In their talks late on Friday, Dai and Yachi "confirmed the importance of Japan-China relations" and in addition discussed possible cultural exchanges among youths from the two countries, the Japanese foreign ministry said in a brief statement.
The pair were believed to be discussing oil and gas in a disputed area of the East China Sea.
Japan was also angered when China worked to scuttle its cherished bid for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council last year.
In a meeting with a Japanese ruling coalition leader on Friday, Dai called Beijing's opposition to the shrine visits a "matter of principle" and said the situation should change.
"The efforts to mend soured Sino-Japan ties have begun with Prime Minister Koizumi on the sidelines amid renewed focus on the leadership election of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in September," the major Japanese newspaper Mainichi Shimbun commented on Friday.
Because the ruling coalition holds the majority in parliament, the new head of the LDP, of which Koizumi is the incumbent president, would become the next premier.
In a sign that the LDP hopes to bridge the gap with the regime in Beijing, its policy chief Hidenao Nakagawa plans to visit China from Feb. 19 and former prime minister Ryutaro Hashimoto is due to visit in late March, media reports said.
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