The momentum of improvement in China-Japan relations has not come easily, and it is particularly important to maintain the political foundation of relations between the two countries, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in Tokyo on Saturday.
Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks during his meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya in Tokyo.
As close neighbors, relationship between China and Japan holds significance that goes beyond bilateral scope, Wang noted, saying the two sides should face up to history and look to the future, maintain the right direction of bilateral relations, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields, promote steady and long-term bilateral relations, and contribute to peace and prosperity of the two countries and Asia.
Wang stressed that correctly understanding and treating history is an important prerequisite for Japan's post-war return to the international community, political foundation for Japan to develop relations with its neighboring countries, and an important criterion for testing whether Japan can abide by its commitment to peaceful development.
Four political documents between China and Japan have made clear provisions on history and the Taiwan question, which must be strictly implemented, Wang said.
For his part, Iwaya said Japan has long followed the path of peaceful development and attaches great importance to abiding by the four political documents between Japan and China, adding Japan's position on the Taiwan question, based on the Japan-China joint communique in 1972, remains unchanged.
In November last year, leaders of the two countries reached an important consensus on comprehensively advancing the strategic relationship of mutual benefit between Japan and China and building constructive and stable bilateral ties, Iwaya said.
Based on the consensus, the two sides have made efforts to promote the improvement of bilateral relations, he added.
Seeing huge potential for bilateral cooperation, Iwaya said Japan is determined and willing to strengthen dialogue and communication with the Chinese side and further push for more results in cooperation in various fields and bring more benefits to the two peoples.
As the international situation is changing rapidly, Japan and China, as responsible countries, should work together to play a positive role in safeguarding regional peace and stability, Iwaya added.
Maintaining political foundation of China-Japan relations particularly important: Wang Yi
Maintaining political foundation of China-Japan relations particularly important: Wang Yi
The deepening integration of sci-tech innovation and industrial innovation emerged as a key focus for potential cooperation among global business leaders at the China Development Forum 2025 held in Beijing on Sunday and Monday.
Speaking at the forum, Li Lecheng, Party secretary of the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, highlighted China's steadfast implementation of the innovation-driven development strategy.
Currently, the number of foreign-invested enterprises established in China has surpassed 1.2 million, with foreign investments spanning 31 major categories and 548 subcategories within the country's manufacturing sector.
"Promoting the deep integration of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation is not a solo performance by China, but a chorus by the world. China has a complete industrial system, rich application scenarios, a super-large-scale market and a large number of talents, which provides a broad cooperation space for international industrial scientific and technological innovation," Li said.
Notably, beyond production, establishing research and development centers in China to collaborate with domestic enterprises on tackling key technical challenges has increasingly become a growing trend among foreign investors.
British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca signed a landmark agreement on Friday to invest 2.5 billion U.S. dollars in Beijing over the next five years. Under the agreement, AstraZeneca will establish a global strategic research and development center in Beijing, its sixth worldwide and second in China after one in Shanghai. The new center, equipped with an advanced artificial intelligence and data science laboratory, will accelerate early-stage drug research and clinical development.
"The reason we want to invest in China is because of the explosion of innovation that is happening in the country. As we work with those companies, we invest, of course, but we also invest in bringing our own capabilities, our own skills. We are investing in the life science physical ecosystem in Beijing, for instance, where we are actually going to help smaller startup companies come up with new products, training people who will actually be able to create economic growth," said AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot.
The economic transformation led by innovation has also brought new opportunities for foreign-funded enterprises.
"We invest in high quality growth, we invest in innovating, and we invest in cooperating with our good Chinese partners. It's a journey that has just started right now, but it also is an area where we need to work close together," said Kim Fausing, president and CEO of Danfoss, a global market leader in heating and cooling.
China integrating innovation with industrial progress resonates with global business leaders
