The 2017 Japanese Foreign Minister's Awards Ceremony took place at the Japanese Ambassador's Residence on September 4. Representatives from the various industrial sectors were invited to the event. This year, five Chinese received awards for excellence in their respective fields. Lv Shihua, former president of Beijing Yue Tan Middle School; Zhang Yan, a consultant for the China Construction Science Technology Group; Xiu Gang, president of Tianjin Foreign Studies University; Jin Fei, director of the Beijing Drama Critics Association; and Zhang Yunfang, director of China Xufu Association were the recipients. Japanese Ambassador to China Yutaka Yokoi presented the awards. "China and Japan are close neighbors separated only by a narrow strip of water. Although there are difficulties in bilateral relations, we should see that there has been unprecedented long-term development in economic agreements, education, culture and tourism between the two sides," the ambassador said in his speech. "Next year is the 40th anniversary of the Sino-Japanese Treaty of Peace and Friendship. The Japanese Embassy will tightly grasp this opportunity for the further development of bilateral relations."