Visit to open new page in ties

Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda's four-day trip to China offers an opportunity for both countries to reshape the dynamics of their relationship. The well-received visit of Premier Wen Jiabao to Tokyo this April laid the groundwork for a potentially significant shift in ties.

The onus is now on Japan to keep up the momentum and the question is can Fukuda rise to the challenge?

He is certainly the most China-positive prime minister in over a decade and key posts in his administration are held by the more moderate politicians such as Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura and Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura. After the political turbulence of the Koizumi years (2001-2006), conditions are at last right to forge a new Sino-Japanese understanding.