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On May 4, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held a press occasion at the Prime Minister’s Official Residence.
 
In regard to the Japan-China Summit Telephone Talk with H.E. Mr. Xi Jinping, President of the People’s Republic of China, the Prime Minister said,
 
“Just a moment ago, I held a summit telephone talk with President Xi Jinping of China. This is the first-ever summit telephone talk held between a Prime Minister of Japan and a President of China. We shared the view that having such an occasion reflects the improvement of the Japan-China relations and it is extremely important for us to show the international community our close collaboration on various international issues including North Korea, including that we held summit telephone talks.
 
Today, we discussed the North Korean issues and Japan-China relations. President Xi and I agreed that the inclusion of complete denuclearization in the recent Panmunjeom Declaration is highly regarded. We shared the recognition over the extreme importance of thorough implementation of the relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions, and concurred to continuously implement these resolutions. We must collaborate with the international community and strongly urge North Korea to take concrete actions. Concerning the situation that North Korea has started to make moves towards the resolution of the nuclear and missile issues, I once again expressed my respect to China and President Xi for urging North Korea. We also shared the view that Japan and China would continue to work together to address these issues.
 
During our summit meeting last year in Da Nang, Viet Nam, President Xi and I confirmed that the meeting marked a new beginning. This month, Premier Li Keqiang will visit Japan and it will be the first visit by a Premier in eight years. President Xi and I also agreed that, making most of the leaders’ visits, we would dramatically expand exchanges between our peoples in a variety of fields, and elevate our bilateral relations that have marked a new beginning to the next level this year, on the 40th anniversary of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Japan and the People’s Republic of China.

This was our first ever summit telephone talk, and we also shared the view that we, who have responsibility for peace and stability in this region, would continue to maintain communication on a variety of issues. I will continue to make efforts to bring Japan and China closer together to further develop our relationship, seizing opportunities like this.”