Officials of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Japanese ruling parties met on Friday for their first meeting since the two sides set up an exchange mechanism to improve bilateral relations.

Wang Jiarui, head of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee, met with the delegation headed by Hidenao Nakagawa, secretary general of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), and Kazuo Kitagawa, secretary general of the ruling coalition partner.

Both sides spoke highly of the exchange mechanism, saying it played a key role in promoting the China-Japan relationship.

The two sides agreed that as ruling parties, they should duly contribute to promote mutually beneficial relations.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao is to visit Japan in mid-April, the first trip to Japan by a Chinese premier since 2000.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited China last October, breaking the ice in long-stalled political ties.

(Xinhua News Agency March 17, 2007)