Japan and China are making progress on realizing a leaders' meeting early next month. However, deep tensions remain over issues in the East and South China seas and over North Korea's nuclear and missile programs.
The foreign ministers agreed last Wednesday to seek a meeting between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in China next month, an event to which Beijing attaches great importance.
The same day, senior Abe adviser Shotaro Yachi traveled to China at the invitation of State Councilor Yang Jiechi, Beijing's top diplomat, and discussed bilateral ties with Yang and Premier Li Keqiang.