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BEIJING (REUTERS, AFP) – China and Japan pledged on Friday (October 26) to strengthen ties as the two countries met at a "historic turning point" by signing a wide range of agreements, including 30 billion USD (41.5 billion USD). currency exchange pact, in a context of growing trade tensions with Washington.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang also agreed that the two countries would work together to achieve denuclearization on the Korean peninsula.
The pacts were reached during Abe's three-day visit to Beijing, as the two neighbors sought to identify new areas of cooperation and seek new ways to promote confidence, which was sometimes fragile since the recovery. diplomatic relations in 1972.
"From competition to coexistence, bilateral relations between Japan and China have entered a new phase. Hand in hand with Prime Minister Li, I would like to advance our ties, "Abe said at a press briefing.
Abe is scheduled to meet President Xi Jinping on Friday as part of the first large-scale Sino-Japanese summit since 2011.
Japanese companies such as Toyota, major automakers, hope to see standardized relations with China to compete with their US and European rivals, while Beijing hopes that Tokyo will approve its ambitious Belt and Road program, an initiative that Xi said , will strengthen trade and transportation links with other countries.
Abe also said Tokyo was "determined" to normalize diplomatic relations with Pyongyang, but only if the preconditions were met, including denuclearization and the liberation of abducted Japanese citizens. "Our two countries bear a great responsibility in achieving peace and stability in this region," Abe said.
Efforts to advance Sino-Japanese relations should "persevere relentlessly to prevent the appearance of new twists", so that previous efforts are not in vain, said Li at a joint briefing with Abe Friday.
"The Chinese side is willing to work with the Japanese side to return to a normal path and maintain the stable, sustainable and healthy development of bilateral relations," he said, adding that he had had frank discussions with Abe since his arrival on the issue of mutual concerns.
They reached a consensus, Li said, that the preservation of long-term healthy and stable relations between China and Japan is in line with the interests of both countries and the region and the world.
The move to strengthen economic ties came when China and the United States have been opposing each other's tariffs in recent months. Japan faces risks by exporting manufacturing equipment and electronic parts to China, which are used to manufacture finished products for the United States and other markets.
Prior to the information meeting, China and Japan signed an agreement to prepare annual plans for talks, dialogues and exchanges, as well as a pact to strengthen cooperation in the field of human rights. 39; innovation. They also agreed to strengthen cooperation in the securities markets, including through the creation of a list of trading funds for trading (ETF), and to facilitate customs clearance.
The two sides signed a currency exchange agreement of up to 3,400 billion yen ($ 30.29 billion), valid until 2021. They also signed an agreement in view of creating a compensation bank in yuan.
The two sides agreed that China and Japan should defend free trade and accelerate negotiations on the Regional Economic Partnership (RCEP) and a trade zone between China, Japan and Korea.
China is also supporting talks between Japan and North Korea to solve problems, Li said at a joint briefing with Abe in Beijing. The two countries recognize that free trade must be safeguarded, Li added, adding that China did not want to continue the competitive devaluation of its yuan.
Relations between the two largest Asian economies have improved in recent years, after reaching a new low in 2012 when Tokyo "nationalized" the disputed islands claimed by Beijing.
Relations quickly warmed when Trump imposed significant tariffs on China while targeting Japanese exports with the aim of reducing US trade deficits, despite his personal ties with Abe. and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Abe and Xi should discuss ways to strengthen economic cooperation between the world's second and third economies, when they meet later on Friday.
Mr. Abe started on Friday with an inspection of troops from Tiananmen Square in Beijing. Mr. Li greeted her as the Japanese flag flew past the opulent Great People's Hall in front of Tiananmen Square. They examined a guard of honor before returning for interviews.
Abe has brought together representatives of 500 Japanese companies looking to increase access to the vast Chinese market, while Beijing is interested in Japanese technology and corporate know-how.
"Although the United States plays a decisive role in Sino-Japanese relations, its effects are limited," the Chinese nationalist nationalist Global Times said in an editorial.
"If Beijing and Tokyo intend to plan their future bilateral relationship on the basis of Washington's attitude, they will only get lost," the government paper said.
"Safeguarding Free Trade"
The last official visit of a Japanese Prime Minister to Beijing was held in 2011.
Since the clumsy meeting between Mr Abe and Mr Xi on the sidelines of a summit in 2014, ministerial visits have taken place on both sides and an increasingly calm speech. Mr. Li went to Tokyo in May.
Mr. Abe's three-day trip, which began on Thursday, suggests that Xi will visit Japan next year.
Messrs. Abe and Li have already met on Thursday at a reception to celebrate the signing of the treaty that would restore relations between Japan and China after the Second World War.
At the event, Li called on countries to "jointly promote peace in the region" and to "preserve multilateralism and free trade," said the state broadcaster CCTV.
For his part, Abe said: "Japan and China play an irreplaceable role in the economic development of Asia and even the world" and the two sides should work together to "promote peace and security. prosperity in the world, "according to CCTV.
Territorial conflicts
Before going to Beijing, Mr. Abe said that he would also discuss North Korea and territorial friction, calling for the East China Sea to become a "sea of peace, friendship and friendship." of cooperation ". Just days before Abe's trip, Tokyo officially filed a lawsuit as Chinese ships sailed around the disputed islands that Tokyo calls Senkaku and Beijing calls the Diaoyu Islands.
China has long denounced Japan for what it regarded as an attitude insufficiently contrite as to its role in the Second World War.
But before the trip, Beijing has adopted a more cordial attitude than in the past.
Japanese media reported that Abe hoped the visit would produce a soft power victory in the form of a panda diplomacy, with the Sendai and Kobe zoos apparently seeking new additions.
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