China hints at Xi meeting with Japan’s new premier Takaichi
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Tuesday talked up “high-level exchanges” in a call with Japanese counterpart Toshimitsu Motegi, hinting at a potential meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japan’s new premier, Sanae Takaichi.
Xi and Takaichi will attend this week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea, offering a window for a meeting on neutral ground between the Chinese leader and the Japanese prime minister.
Be that as it may, “China has noticed several positive signals coming out of Japan’s new cabinet,” Wang said, without giving any further details.
“High-level exchanges are very important to China-Japan relations,” he said, adding “I hope Japan’s new cabinet will take a good first step in exchanges with China.”
Beijing said on Friday that Xi would meet several heads of state at the summit – which Trump is expected to skip – but only specified South Korean President Lee Jae Myung.
Separately, Takaichi met with U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday, who welcomed her pledge to accelerate a military buildup and signed a series of deals on trade and rare earths.
