Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada may visit China next month and meet with his Chinese counterpart, Liang Guanglie, Defense Ministry sources said Friday.
Tokyo has sounded out Beijing about Hamada visiting around March 20, but the date could still change depending on the situation in either country, the sources said.
It would be the first trip by a defense minister to China since Shigeru Ishiba visited in 2003 as chief of the then Defense Agency.