Ex-Japanese PM Fukuda said to want talks with Xi at Boao Forum

Former Japanese prime minister Yasuo Fukuda wants to meet President Xi Jinping at an economic forum this weekend, Japanese media reported, in what would be Xi's first meeting with a Japanese leader since he became president last month.

Fukuda, 76, who was prime minister from 2007 to 2008, left Japan yesterday to go to Hainan province in southern China for the annual meeting of the Boao Forum for Asia and was trying to set up a meeting with Xi on the sidelines of the forum on Saturday or Sunday, Kyodo News Agency reported.

It quoted unnamed sources as saying the Chinese side hoped Fukuda, who was regarded as friendly towards Beijing when he was in office, could emphasise the importance of Sino-Japanese relations. The sources added that Beijing was aiming to soften Japanese sentiment towards China by showing its willingness to engage in dialogue with Japan.

Three years ago, Fukuda was elected to the board of directors of the forum, which draws both political and business leaders from around Asia. In an interview with Phoenix Television on Tuesday, Fukuda said he was worried about the Sino-Japanese status quo and called for an immediate summit between the new leaders on both sides.

Tensions between the two nations flared last year when the Japanese government announced it was buying three disputed islands in the East China Sea, which are part of a group known as the Diaoyus in China and the Senkakus in Japan. China has since been sending vessels to patrol the disputed waters.

However, signs of a thaw in relations have emerged recently with the resumption of non-governmental cultural exchanges.