Vice-president adopts 'softer tone' on Diaoyu disputes with Japanese delegation
Li Yuanchao tells businessmen he is confident territorial row can be resolved peacefully
Vice-President Li Yuanchao made his diplomatic debut in his new role in a meeting with Japanese business leaders in Beijing yesterday.
Li was the highest-level official to attend the three-day Japan-China Economic Association meeting, which ends today.
The meeting came amid Japanese media reports that Japan may send Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso to China next month.
Speaking after the meeting with Li, some members of the Japanese business delegation said he had struck a softer tone over the two countries' territorial dispute in the East China Sea.
"What impressed me most is Li said he believed China and Japan could solve their problems peacefully," said Hiromasa Yonekura, senior councillor of the delegation. "Li said China hopes to solidify ties with Japanese political leaders and build a win-win relationship."
What impressed me most is Li said he believed China and Japan could solve their problems peacefully
Li said the territorial dispute over islands known as the Diaoyus in China and Senkakus in Japan had always been a tough problem, but there would surely be a way to solve it, adding there were many examples in Europe where such disputes had been solved through dialogue rather than war, Yonekura said.