China wants to 'operate with Japan to recreate the spirit' of the 1978 peace and friendship pact.

As the two nations sent delayed congratulations on their 45th anniversary despite chilly relations, China urged Japan to join efforts to "relive" the spirit of peaceful coexistence and resistance to hegemony inherent in their peace and friendship treaty.

On Monday, Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida exchanged congratulatory greetings, their first contact since a short conversation on the margins of an Asean meeting in Indonesia last month.

Six years after diplomatic relations were normalized, Japan and the People's Republic of China signed the Treaty of Peace and Friendship in August 1978. It went into effect on October 23 of that year.

However, the two nations have had disagreements over a number of geopolitical problems, most notably Japan's discharge of radioactive waste water.

Due to mounting concerns over the anticipated discharge of waste water from Japan's tsunami-damaged Fukushima nuclear facility, no formal 45th anniversary celebrations were conducted in August.

The repercussions saw Li and Kishida exchange barbs when they met on September 6 in Jakarta for the Asean Plus Three summit, which included the ten Association of Southeast Asian Nations, as well as China, Japan, and South Korea.