Japan PM Abe says summit with China on the cards

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Friday his government was making final arrangements to hold a bilateral summit with China in Beijing next week.

"Both Japan and China are coming to the view that it would benefit not just the two countries but regional stability if a summit is held," Abe said in a television programme.

China and Japan on Friday agreed to work on improving ties and signalled willingness to put a bitter row over disputed islands on the back burner, paving the way for their leaders to meet at an Asian-Pacific summit next week.

(Reporting by Tetsushi Kajimoto and Leika Kihara; Editing by Jeremy Laurence)