Chinese President Hu Jintao's trip to Japan this week, the first by a Chinese leader in a decade, was marked by less bitterness about the war and more publicity events aimed at wooing a wary Japanese public.
Behind the lighter tone and Hu's charm offensive, analysts say, is a desire to improve the overall climate for bilateral relations, even as the former opponents continue to struggle with difficult disputes.
"There are still a lot of problems to be resolved, there are no illusions there," said Joseph Cheng, a professor of political science at City University of Hong Kong.
But the countries "understand they must contain their problems, not allow the relations to deteriorate," he said.