China and Japan set rivalry aside at summit
BEIJING - China's ceremonial welcome for Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Beijing on Friday at the Great Hall of the People would have been out of the question a few years ago.
Chinese protesters in 2012 boycotted Japanese products and smashed cars outside the Japanese Embassy over Tokyo's move to nationalize disputed islands in the East China Sea.
Two years later, when Abe met Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of a regional meeting in Beijing, the atmosphere was frigid and the glances awkward.
On Friday, the optics were warmer: Xi and Abe smiled and clasped hands against a backdrop of the flags of China and Japan
