Abe Hopes for Summit with China to Mend Ties

Tokyo, Feb. 12 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday expressed his intention to seek an opportunity to hold summit talks with China in an effort to improve relations between the two countries, which have been strained due to a territorial issue. "I will make efforts to realize high-level or summit dialogue (with China) at some point," Abe said at a meeting of the House of Representatives Budget Committee. The prime minister again condemned a Chinese warship's use of a weapon-targeting radar against a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer in the East China Sea late last month, saying that it is "an extremely provocative and dangerous act." Abe said he hopes to resume talks with China for establishing a bilateral communications mechanism aimed at ensuring safety in the East China Sea, where the Japanese-controlled Senkaku islands are located. The negotiations on the maritime safety mechanism were suspended after Japan nationalized three of the five uninhabited islands last September. The island chain, also claimed by China, is known as Diaoyu in the country. It is very important to establish such a mechanism in order to avoid an accidental clash in the sea, Abe said. Abe said he is sure that Japan and China can establish the mechanism, noting that even the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War era had a similar system. "The door is always open" for restarting the Japan-China talks, he added. END