China summit first step to improved ties, says Japan PM

A 30-minute summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping was a “first step” on the road to improving relations between Asia’s two largest economies after years of hostility, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Monday.

“It was the first step for improving ties by returning to mutually beneficial relations based on common strategic interests,” Abe told reporters in Beijing on the sidelines of the APEC summit.