A meeting between Trade Minister Ryosei Akazawa and a senior Chinese official would have marked the highest-level engagement since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi triggered the row by saying a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could trigger a response from Tokyo. TOKYO: Japan's Trade Minister Ryosei Akazawa said on Saturday (May 23) there were no formal bilateral talks with China's Commerce Minister Wang Wentao, though the two had a brief conversation before a dinner on Friday,