Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (R) shakes hands with visiting Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda during a welcoming ceremony held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China today. Yasuo Fukuda arrived here Thursday for a four-day official visit to China. --Xinhua

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao held talks with Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda this morning.

The talks took place in the Great Hall of the People after a red-carpet welcome ceremony.

Wen said China and Japan had established "a sound work relationship" at a time when the bilateral relations entered "an important period of improvement and development".

He said he and Fukuda had a "friendly telephone call" only four days after Fukuda assumed his premiership. They also met and had luncheon together during an Asian summit in Singapore last month.

Wen said he would like to work with Fukuda to jointly seize opportunities so as to "promote a new and greater development of the strategic and mutually beneficial China-Japan relations".

Fukuda described their talks as "a heart-to-heart dialogue" and said he was determined to treat the bilateral relations earnestly "in the new year to come".

He said the China-Japan relations were facing "huge opportunities and responsibilities". Fukuda hoped the two countries could conduct cooperation for the future of Asia and the world.

After the talks, the two will witness the signing of relevant cooperation documents and meet press together.

Later in the afternoon, Chinese President Hu Jintao and top legislator Wu Bangguo will meet with Fukuda after Fukuda delivered a speech at the elite Peking University.