Ties with Japan seen improving after talks

During the two leaders' meeting, Xi also emphasized that the two sides need to abide by the principles of the four China-Japan political documents and translate into policies the political consensus that the two countries should "be partners, not threats".

Major issues of principle such as history and Taiwan bear on the political foundation and basic trust in China-Japan relations, and therefore must be handled in good faith and appropriately, Xi said, adding that China does not interfere in other countries' internal affairs, nor does it accept any excuse by anyone to interfere in its internal affairs.

"The four China-Japan political documents have served as the political foundation that guarantees the development of the China-Japan relationship over the years. As we can see, difficulties suffered by bilateral ties were caused by deviations from the documents," said Lyu.

The four documents, including the China-Japan Joint Statement signed in 1972, have reached a number of important common understandings that have defined the general direction of the China-Japan relationship. And commitments to the documents were reiterated in a four-point principled agreement reached between the two countries in 2014.