Civilian visits key to ties with Japan

A JAPANESE CULTURAL tourist group of about 3,000 people will be on a three-day-visit to China from Friday. Comprising mainly professionals from the tourism industry and led by some Japanese city mayors, the group aims to promote cultural exchanges between the two countries and strengthen coordination. Comments:

Interaction between civilians cannot be more important for China and Japan at a time when they really need to understand each other better. We hope people from the two countries know more about each other through civilian exchanges, and, in turn, help improve Sino-Japanese diplomatic relations.

people.com.cn, quoting Cheng Yonghua, China's ambassador to Japan, May 15