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Japan-China Summit Meeting
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe welcomed Mr. Wen Jiabao, the Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, as an official guest at the Prime Minister's Official Residence. After attending a welcoming ceremony at the South Garden, the two leaders held a meeting. Prime Minister Abe said at the start of the meeting, which was the third occasion of talks between the two leaders, "Today, I would like to proceed with talks in a relaxed atmosphere," "This visit by Premier Wen has enabled a big step further toward the mutually beneficial relationship based on common strategic interests, which we agreed to build during my visit to China last year." Premier Wen responded, "I also believe this point is the most important achievement of my visit to Japan." During the meeting, the two leaders decided to promote various concrete measures of cooperation toward the building of the mutually beneficial relationship based on common strategic interests. The two leaders also discussed an agenda that covered: a Japan-China high level economic dialogue; exchanges in the areas of culture and sports; security; cooperation on energy and the environment; denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula; North Korea's abduction issue; and the issues related to the East China Sea. Further referring to the mutually beneficial relationship based on common strategic interests, Prime Minister Abe indicated his hope to visit China by the end of this year, saying, "As a first step, building relations of mutual trust is important. It is very significant to this end to promote frequent mutual visits by the leadership of the two countries so that these relations can further develop." Premier Wen said in response, "It would be delightful to have you visit China. I hope you would be sure to spare time to visit places other than Beijing." Following the meeting, the two leaders attended the signing ceremony of a joint document. Afterwards, Prime Minister Abe invited the two countries' officials and related parties to a dinner banquet that he hosted in their honor.
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