“The China-Japan relationship is now entering a new era… the world we are living in today has more uncertainties and unstable factors. President Xi made it very clear during the meeting that China and Japan, as the two largest global economies and major regional powers, have shared responsibilities to play a constructive role to ensure peace, stability, and development of the region and the world at large,” Rong Ying, vice president of the China Institute of International Studies, made these comments during an interview with CGTN's The Point with Liu Xin (@thepointwithlx).

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok, which sent a clear sign that the bilateral relationship between two countries was back "in the right orbit". Xi stressed that both sides should resolutely defend multilateralism and safeguard the free trade system and rules of the WTO to push for an open world economy.

Takesato Watanabe, professor emeritus at Doshisha University, believed that as the top three economies in the world, if Japan, China, and the United States are not connected in a friendly fashion, it will be very bad for the world. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has shown a positive attitude in his interactions with Beijing, but unfortunately, he was reluctant to apologize for the war crimes that Japan has committed in China during World War II.

"The question of history is very much important and sensitive for the bilateral relationship…China's position has been very clear. History should be a mirror. And we have to look ahead towards the future,” Rong responded and hailed Prime Minister Abe's reiteration that Japan will uphold the spirit of the four political documents signed by both sides, which have witnessed the progress made by both sides over the last four decades.

Professor Watanabe said Japan and China must strengthen their relationship from a broader perspective, not only between China and Japan but how Japan and China can contribute to the development of Asia. If Japan can join China's Belt and Road Initiative in the spirit of cooperation, both countries can make more progress along the way, he added.

According to Japanese media, officials from Beijing and Tokyo are cooperating on a Mass Transit System project in Thailand. If confirmed, this would be the first joint project between China and Japan in a third country under the Belt and Road Initiative framework.