Shinzō Abe summit. October 2018 saw Abe making a landmark trip to China. Despite the Abe administration efforts to promote "multilateralism" on the global scale, Abe conceeded in his China visit the benefits of strong foundations on the bi-lateral level, pledging to see bilateral relations into further "dimensions". China`s enthusiasm with the visit of Japan`s Prime Minister showed reciprocity, with China announcing it`s invitation to Japan to participate in the maritime Belt and Road (丝绸之路经济带和21世纪海上丝绸之路) initiative. On 20 September 2018, Abe was re-elected as leader of the main ruling Liberal Democratic Party. The victory puts him on track to become Japan’s longest-serving
Japan–South Korea relations GSOMIA is automatically extended unless either of countries wants it to be demolished. In August 2017, South Korea and Japan decided to renew the agreement. Shinzo Abe, to increase its military profile in the region. Since Lee Myung-bak's visit to the Liancourt Rocks and repeated demands for the emperor to apologize again in 2012, the Japanese public's image of South Korea deteriorated significantly. Japanese tourists to South Korea declined by half from 3.5 million in 2012 to 1.8 million in 2015 while South Korean tourists doubled from 2 million in 2012 to 4 million in 2015. The Diplomatic Blue Book