Chinese premier calls for efforts to cement public support for China-Japan ties

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Tuesday called on business leaders and former government officials from China and Japan to make joint efforts to consolidate public support for improved bilateral relations.

Li made the remarks when meeting representatives attending the second China-Japan Business Leader and Former High-Level Government Official Dialogue, in Beijing.

With the exchanges between China and Japan in recent days, bilateral relations have seen improvement, but the foundation of the relationship is still not solid, Li said.

"There is more work to be done to get bilateral ties back on track," he said.

He suggested that both sides should maintain the right direction of China-Japan ties and keep improving stable development of bilateral relations on the basis of the four important political documents between China and Japan.

Li commended efforts in bilateral exchanges and cooperation by business leaders and former government officials on both sides.

He hoped that dialogue, as a platform for second-track diplomacy, would continue to play a positive role in reducing uncertainties in bilateral ties and reinforce public support for such relations.

The Japanese representatives said Premier Li pointed out the direction for the improvement and development of Japan-China relations, voicing a willingness to enhancing mutual understanding and cooperation in the improvement of bilateral ties.

Chairman of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges Zeng Peiyan, former Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, and Chair of the Japan Business Federation Sadayuki Sakakibara attended the meeting.

The dialogue, lasting from Tuesday to Wednesday, covers trade, investment and financial cooperation, innovation, infrastructure, energy resources and environmental protection.

The first dialogue was held in Tokyo, November 2015. Endi