There is a willingness by Japan to "further develop" Sino-Japanese ties, the country's newly elected prime minister, Shinzo Abe said Tuesday.   

At his first press conference as prime minister Abe said China was an important country for Japan and the country's peaceful development would be helpful to Asia.

Abe said he wished to make efforts to "further develop" bilateral ties between Japan and China. He made his comments at a press conference held in his official residence Tuesday evening.

Abe stressed that as an Asian country Japan knew the importance of building up friendly ties with its neighbors. He also mentioned the importance of candid summit talks between China and South Korea.

The new prime minister also emphasized his desire to promote the alliance with the United States and for his country to play a leading part in international affairs.

Abe sealed his victory in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election on September 20 and won the confirmation vote in an extra plenary Diet session on Tuesday afternoon. He's Japan's youngest postwar prime minister and the first premier born after World War II.

China happy to improve links with Japan

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Tuesday sent a message to Japan's newly-elected Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expressing his willingness to develop good relations with Japan on the basis of three political documents.

The three documents -- the Sino-Japanese Joint Statement, the Peace and Friendship Treaty, and the Sino-Japanese Joint Declaration -- have been the guiding principles for the development of Sino-Japanese relations over the past 30-plus years.

Also on Tuesday the Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing sent a message to his Japanese counterpart Taro Aso to congratulate him on his re-election.

(Xinhua News Agency September 27, 2006)