China president begins Japan visit

by Dave Keating | May 6, 2008 at 01:19 am

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Chinese president Hu Jintao has begun a visit to Japan, an always awkward meeting considering the two are historical rivals. His visit was marked by significant protests in Tokyo over the Tibet issue, but there appears to have been no violence.

Hu Jintao, the Chinese president, has arrived in Tokyo for talks with Japanese leaders in which border disputes, historical animosity and concerns over China's rule in Tibet are expected to figure. Hu, whose visited started on Tuesday, is the highest-ranking Chinese official to visit Japan in a decade.
Hu and Yasuo Fukuda, the Japanese prime minister, were expected to discuss climate change, contested gas fields in the East China Sea, Chinese food-safety rules and perhaps Tibet. In advance of Hu's arrival, about 500 people protested in Tokyo.

Some of the demonstrators held banners calling for a "Free Tibet". There were no reports of arrests.