China And Japan Meet At The G20 To Reset Ties

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Hamburg, Germany, July 8, 2017. (Xinhua/Ma Zhancheng)

Bloomberg: China and Japan Leaders Seek Ties Reset Amid North Korea Worries

* First formal summit in 10 months crowns months of work
* Five years since island feud sparked worst crisis in decades

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met for 40 minutes on Saturday in Germany as they seek to overcome years of rocky ties to better handle the military threat from North Korea.

In their chat the leaders agreed to enhance talks and exchanges and continue to put pressure on the regime in Pyongyang, according to Japan’s Kyodo News. It was their first formal discussion in 10 months, and came on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Hamburg.

Abe held a “very friendly” meeting with Xi, Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman Norio Maruyama told reporters in Hamburg. The Japanese leader told Xi he wants a summit between Japan, China and South Korea at the “earliest possible” opportunity, Maruyama said. Abe invited Xi to visit next year, Kyodo reported.

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Update: Abe, Xi hold talks at G-20 summit as North Korea threat looms (Japan Times).

WNU Editor: China urges Japan to remove distractions .... Xi meets Abe, urges Japan to remove distractions of ties with actions (Xinhuanet). Sighhh .... someone should tell China that they should also remove their own "distractions". At least they have agreed to meet again in the future .... Xi Jinping, Shinzo Abe agree to hold more face-to-face talks (Nikkei Asian Review).