Beijing-Tokyo ties deserve brighter future

Editor's note: Jiang Jianguo, minister of the State Council Information Office, also delivers a speech at the Beijing-Tokyo forum on Tuesday. Excerpts translated from the Chinese version of the speech follow:

The annual Beijing-Tokyo Forum, which is in its 12th year, has become a representative civil dialogue platform between China and Japan. It has helped strengthen friendship between Chinese and Japanese peoples from various walks and develop Sino-Japanese relations.

When President Xi Jinping met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang province, earlier this month, he explained China's basic stance on improving bilateral ties. He said the two sides should shelve their differences and put bilateral ties on the right track.