Beijing and Tokyo to resume ministerial-level dialogue

BEIJING - China and Japan will hold a strategic dialogue on Monday in Tokyo, resuming ministerial-level talks that were suspended after bilateral ties soured last year after a fishing boat collision near the Diaoyu Islands.

The 11th strategic dialogue will be headed by Chinese Vice-Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun and his Japanese counterpart Sasae Kenichiro.

Japan's Kyodo News Agency said on Saturday that the Japanese government hopes to repair bilateral ties that have deteriorated since last September's collision, and lay the groundwork for Prime Minister Naoto Kan's planned visit to China this summer.