The Japanese and Chinese governments are considering realizing a visit by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to China on Oct. 23, exactly 40 years after the Japan-China Peace and Friendship Treaty entered into force, it has been learned.
Abe is expected to stay in the country for about two nights and three days and have a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping and other officials to show improvements in bilateral ties, according to a diplomatic source knowledgeable about Japan-China relations.
The visit can be realized only if Abe secures his third consecutive term as president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in the LDP presidential election on Sept. 20. It would mark the first visit to China by a Japanese prime minister -- other than for international conferences in the country -- since a December 2011 visit by then Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda.
Abe is expected to arrive in Beijing on Oct. 23, attend a ceremony to mark the 40th anniversary and visit such places as Shenzhen, Guangdong province, which is home to many start-ups in information technology and other fields, according to the source.
Tokyo and Beijing are slated to hold a forum to discuss cooperation among private firms from both sides in third-party nations with an eye on China's Belt and Road Initiative to create a massive economic zone. Abe is expected to attend that event.
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