Abe Foresees Wen's Visit to Japan as Successful

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Tuesday that he expects Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's upcoming visit to Japan to be successful.

　　Abe made the remark while debriefing Hidenao Nakagawa, secretary general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and Kazuo Kitagawa, secretary general of the ruling coalition partner New Komeito. The two top ruling parties' officials have just returned from a trip to Beijing.

　　Abe called their visit to China "fruitful," according to Kyodo News. The premier said later that he would work to construct strategic, mutually-beneficial ties with China, and that he expects Wen's visit in April will help boost bilateral relations.

　　At the meeting with Nakagawa and Kitagawa, Chinese President Hu Jintao said that that the two countries should continuously enhance political trust, properly handle sensitive issues and work for a mutually beneficial relationship based on common strategic interests.

　　During a press conference on Friday, Premier Wen described his planned visit to Japan as an "ice-melting journey" for bilateral relations, after Abe's "ice-breaking journey" to China last October.

　　This year marks the 35th anniversary of the normalization of China-Japan relations and is also the Year of Cultural and Sports Exchanges between them.