Japanese Foreign Minister Iwaya Takeshi has said he hopes to meet his Chinese counterpart in China as soon as possible to address bilateral matters of concern and deepen cooperation.

Iwaya spoke at a forum in Tokyo on Wednesday. The event was attended by experts from Japan and China to discuss issues between the countries.

He said he intends to hold in-depth discussions with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi when he has a chance to visit China.

He also said he wants to invite Wang to Japan at an appropriate time to advance cooperation.

Iwaya noted that the two neighbors have experienced difficulties several times.

Still, he said Tokyo and Beijing bear great responsibility on the regional and global stages, and that many nations and people expect the Asian neighbors to develop a constructive and stable relationship.

Iwaya welcomed China's recent reinstatement of visa-free short-term trips by Japanese nationals.

He said the amount of positive news about the two countries is increasing gradually, and that their ties have once again taken a strong step forward.

Wang sent a video message to the event. In it, he said that with unilateralism and protectionism on the rise, China and Japan should work together to safeguard the solidarity and cooperation of Asia to prevent outside forces from causing confrontations.

Wang apparently had the incoming administration of US President-elect Donald Trump in mind when he made the remarks.