(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-05-06 16:00

BEIJING - Chinese President Hu Jintao arrived in Tokyo Tuesday, kicking off a five-day state visit to Japan, the first by a Chinese president to the country in a decade.

The following is a brief introduction to the major events in China-Japan relations:

On September 25, 1972, Japanese Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka visited China. On September 29, both the Chinese and Japanese governments issued the Sino-Japanese Joint Statement, restoring the diplomatic relations between the two countries.

On August 12, 1978, China and Japan signed the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between the People's Republic of China and Japan. On October 22, Chinese Vice Premier Deng Xiaoping visited Japan. On October 23, China and Japan exchanged documents of ratification of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship.

In November 1998, Chinese President Jiang Zemin made a state visit to Japan, which marked the first visit to Japan by a Chinese head of state. The two sides issued the Sino-Japanese Joint Declaration, declaring the establishment of a partnership of friendship and cooperation for peace and development.

In April 2005, Chinese President Hu Jintao held talks with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi at the conclusion of the Asia-Africa leaders summit in Jakarta, a day after Koizumi apologized for Japan's wartime atrocities in Asia.

The two leaders agreed to develop bilateral ties based on the Sino-Japanese Joint Statement, the Peace and Friendship Treaty and the Sino-Japanese Joint Declaration.

However, following Koizumi's repeated visit to the Yasukuni Shrine where 14 Class A war criminals are honored, relations between the two countries became frosty, with high-level visits between the two sides suspended and exchanges in various areas severely affected.

In October 2006, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe paid an "ice-breaking" visit to China. During his stay in China, the two countries agreed to foster mutually beneficial relations based on common strategic interests in a bid to realize "peaceful coexistence, friendship for generations, mutually beneficial cooperation and common development."

They also agreed to adhere to the principles prescribed in the three political documents and properly handle the problems that hamper the development of bilateral ties.

In April 2007, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao paid a visit to Japan. The tour, which re-opened top-level visit exchanges between China and Japan, was widely acclaimed as "ice-thawing."

In December 2007, Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda visited China in return. The visit, dubbed as "spring-herald," further clarified the basic principles and essence of their mutually beneficial relations based on common strategic interests.