BEIJING -- President Xi Jinping on Thursday called on China and Japan to enhance party-to-party exchanges and cooperation.

Xi made the remarks during a meeting in Beijing with a delegation led by Toshihiro Nikai, secretary general of Japan's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), and Yoshihisa Inoue, secretary general of Komeito, LDP's ruling coalition partner.

Xi spoke highly of the role of China-Japan ruling party exchange mechanism in promoting bilateral relations, and hailed the efforts made by Nikai and Inoue to promote exchanges between the ruling parties of China and Japan, saying they have strengthened bilateral practical cooperation and friendship.

For their part, Nikai and Inoue said Japan's ruling coalition stands ready to enhance communication and exchange with the Communist Party of China (CPC) and make greater contributions to the development of Japan-China relations.

Representatives of the CPC and Japan's ruling coalition, formed by the LDP and Komeito, met in East China's Fujian province from Dec 25 to 26 to convene the seventh meeting of the China-Japan ruling party exchange mechanism.