Officials of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Japanese
ruling parties met on Friday for their first meeting since the two
sides set up an exchange mechanism to improve bilateral
relations.
Wang Jiarui, head of the International Department of the CPC
Central Committee, met with the delegation headed by Hidenao
Nakagawa, secretary general of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP),
and Kazuo Kitagawa, secretary general of the ruling coalition
partner.
Both sides spoke highly of the exchange mechanism, saying it
played a key role in promoting the China-Japan relationship.
The two sides agreed that as ruling parties, they should duly
contribute to promote mutually beneficial relations.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao is to visit Japan in mid-April, the
first trip to Japan by a Chinese premier since 2000.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited China last October,
breaking the ice in long-stalled political ties.
(Xinhua News Agency March 17, 2007)
