Chinese president in Japan to cement warming ties

Hu Jintao arrived in Tokyo on Tuesday for a five-day state visit, the first by a Chinese president in a decade, to stabilize warming ties.

Hu is scheduled to meet Emperor Akihito. He will hold a summit with Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda to discuss issues ranging from climate change, pandas, to the East China Sea issue. The two heads of state are also expected to play table tennis during the visit.

The two sides will issue a joint statement at the end of Wednesday’s summit.

Hu told Japanese reporters on Sunday that his trip’s atmosphere will be like a "warm spring." In 2006, then Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made an "ice-breaking trip" to China, re-establishing ties after five years without high-level exchanges.

The two leaders are expected to discuss the disputed oil and natural gas fields in the East China Sea. Hu had said earlier that he was optimistic that the issue will be resolved, although analysts are not expecting any major agreements.

Economic ties between the two countries have thrived, the AP report said. According to CRI Nordic, China was Japan’s top trading partner in 2007 while Japan was China’s third largest. Bilateral trade is pegged at 236 billion USD (152.5 billion euros).

Another issue that might be taken up is if Japan would receive another panda to replace Ling Ling, who died last week of heart failure at Tokyo’s largest zoo.

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