New Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is moving quickly to mend Japan's tattered relations with its Asian neighbors, preparing to travel to China and South Korea as early as this weekend — less than two weeks after he assumed the nation's highest office. The hastily arranged trip would mark a major gesture of rapprochement, but Abe may be hard-pressed to convince his counterparts in Beijing and Seoul, angry over visits by his predecessor to a Tokyo war shrine, that he has any significant policy changes up his sleeve. Making good on a vow immediately after his election by parliament last week to put mending the rift atop his political agenda, Abe said Monday he hopes to meet with leaders in Beijing in Seoul to discuss ways to improve ties that have taken a battering over the past year.
Chief government spokesman Yasuhisa Shiozaki confirmed a summit with both countries was being discussed, but said the exact dates of the trip were not yet finalized. He confirmed that the trip could be made in one fell swoop, but refused to provide further details. Japanese media reports said Abe was expected to meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao on Oct. 8 and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun on Oct. 9.
Both countries had declined summits with Japan in protest of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's repeated visits to the ultra-conservative Yasukuni Shrine, where Japan's fallen soldiers, including a handful of World War II war criminals, are worshipped.