This year marks the 40th anniversary of the China-Japan Treaty of Peace and Friendship. China's top legislator and Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), Li Zhanshu calls on both sides to cherish the peaceful and friendly situation initiated by the older generations and promote Sino-Japanese relations steadily.
Li made the remarks on Tuesday when he held talks with Tadamori Oshima, speaker of the House of Representatives of the Japanese parliament, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
During the meeting, Li said that China and Japan should make joint efforts to meet each other halfway and ensure the healthy development of Sino-Japanese relations, following the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries.
Li urged that the two sides take each other's development as an opportunity to deepen pragmatic cooperation and provide a solid foundation for China-Japan strategic and mutually beneficial relations.
This year also marks the 40th anniversary of China's opening-up policy, a landmark program that transformed the once impoverished nation into the world's second-largest economy.
The door to China's opening will not be closed and it will only open wider, Li stressed, adding that no matter how far China develops, it will always adhere to the path of peaceful development and commit itself to building a community of shared future for mankind.
According to Li, China has introduced a series of specific measures to further implement the opening-up policy and hopes that Japan will continue to seize the major opportunity of China's new round of opening up.
China and Japan should also strengthen cooperation in international affairs, jointly safeguard economic globalization and trade liberalization, and promote the development of a global governance system in a more fair and reasonable direction, Li noted.
Tadamori Oshima said that strengthening mutually beneficial cooperation with China is a common consensus among all walks of life in Japan.
The Japanese parliament is willing to strengthen communication with China's NPC, promote mutual understanding and pragmatic cooperation, and make new contributions to Japan-China relations, he said.
