It was an unlikely and slightly surreal match during an otherwise somber trilateral summit in Japan: Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao met aging Japanese boy-band SMAP and asked them to sing him a tune during a visit to Japan, adding resonance to his calls for harmony between the two countries.

The meeting, which highlighted Mr. Wen's efforts to maintain an avuncular public image, could also prelude better fortunes in China for SMAP, whose plans for a debut concert in the country last year were blocked twice.

Mr. Wen, accompanied by China's commerce minister and the head of its economic planning agency, told the band on Saturday they are welcome to come to China and inadvertently leaked news that they have new plans for a concert there.

'I hope you bring with you seeds of China-Japan friendship that take deep root and blossom in China,' Mr. Wen, who is 68 years old, told the four of the band's five members who were present. 'I am old and I haven't heard your songs. I hope you could sing for me.'

SMAP responded by launching into a rendition of their popular song 'The Only Flower In The World' and posing for a photo with Mr. Wen.

Mr. Wen, in Japan for a summit with Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, repeatedly called during his trip for more friendly relations and cooperation between the countries. On Sunday, the three leaders pledged further cooperation in nuclear safety and disaster preparedness, a move prompted by the nuclear crisis in Japan has faced since a powerful earthquake and tsunami struck the country in March.

SMAP has been an unwitting victim of China-Japan diplomatic spats before. Relations between the two countries soured last year after the collision of a Chinese fishing boat with two Japanese coast-guard vessels in disputed waters. Among China's responses to the incident was a suspension in September of ticket sales for SMAP's debut performance in Shanghai. The concert didn't go through.

Earlier, SMAP was scheduled to perform at the Shanghai World Expo in June, but organizers canceled the event citing security concerns.

SMAP's members are the titans of Japan's entertainment industry. They have performed for about two decades, releasing their first group album in 1991, and they appear regularly in TV dramas and on Japan's colorful variety programs.

在前往日本参加中日韩三方峰会期间，中国国务院总理温家宝会见了日本老牌男子组合SMAP，并在访问期间要求他们献唱一曲，这让他提出的两国和谐相处的呼吁激起更强烈的反响。这个看起来不大可能发生、有点超现实的会见打破了峰会原本严肃沉重的气氛。

此次会见中，温家宝努力维持的慈祥亲和的公众形象体现得淋漓尽致。对SMAP来说，此次会见可能也预示着他们会在中国有更好的运气。去年，该组合准备在中国举行首场演唱会的计划两度受阻。

上周六，在中国商务部部长和国家发改委主任的陪同下，温家宝对SMAP组合说欢迎他们去中国。上周六，在中国商务部部长和国家发改委主任的陪同下，温家宝对SMAP组合说欢迎他们去中国，无意间透露了SMAP将再次准备在中国举办演唱会的消息。

该组合共有5名成员，其中4位与温家宝见了面。现年68岁的温家宝对他们说，希望你们带去中日友谊的种子，让它在中国生根发芽、开花结果；我年纪大，没听过你们的歌，希望你们能唱给我听。

于是SMAP演唱了《世界上唯一的花》（The Only Flower In The World）这首人气歌曲，并与温家宝合影留念。

温家宝到访日本是为了参加与日本首相菅直人（Naoto Kan）和韩国总统李明博（Lee Myung-bak）的峰会。他在日本期间再三呼吁两国应加强友好关系和合作。上周日，受日本核危机的推动，三国领导人誓言增进在核安全及防灾准备方面的合作。今年3月，日本遭到大地震和海啸袭击后面临严重核危机。

过去，SMAP在不知不觉间成为中日外交争端的受害者。去年，中国一艘渔船与日本海岸警卫队两艘巡逻船在争议水域相撞后，两国关系迅速恶化。中国对此事采取的措施就包括，暂停SMAP9月份在上海首场演唱会的门票销售。演唱会最终未能举行。

SMAP原本定于去年6月在上海世博会演出，但主办方以安全问题为由取消了演出。

SMAP成员是日本娱乐业的巨星。他们的表演生涯已长达约20年，1991年发布首张专辑，经常出演电视剧并出现在日本各类综艺节目中。