Foreign Minister Wang Yi To Visit Tokyo In April

Foreign Minister Wang Yi will make an official visit to Japan in mid-April, his department announced on Wednesday, in a sign of warming ties between the two nations that could culminate in an exchange of state visits.

During his trip, he will meet with his Japanese counterpart Kono Taro, foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters during a regular press briefing.

Tokyo is eager to get the relationship back on firmer footing, especially as it fears being shut out of talks on North Korea's nuclear program, in which Beijing is likely to be a major player.

Japan has been wooing China with official visits and business delegations, but an exchange of state visits has remained a hard sell.

"This is an important measure for strengthening high-level exchange and communication between the two countries," Geng said.

"We hope that the two sides can use this visit to increase mutual trust and at the tame time manage our differences."

Taro travelled to China in January, becoming the first Japanese foreign minister to visit the country in nearly two years. (AFP)