Japan and China agreed Sunday to resume reciprocal visits by their leaders, underscoring that Asia's two biggest economies are eager to mend ties in the year marking the 40th anniversary of the signing of a bilateral friendship treaty.
But the two sides apparently failed to find common ground on certain sensitive issues, including a territorial dispute, underscoring the need to focus on using their current momentum to improve relations.
Foreign Minister Taro Kono said he asked Chinese Premier Li Keqiang during their talks in Beijing to visit Japan as soon as possible to participate in a trilateral summit including South Korea that Tokyo wanted to host last year. Kono said Li replied "in a positive manner."