Tokyo  - A Chinese naval training vessel made a port call Thursday at the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force's Etajima port in Hiroshima Prefecture, media reports said.

It is only the second such port call made by a Chinese navy vessel in Japan, following one in November 2007 in Tokyo, Kyodo News reported.

The roughly 360 crew members on board the 5,470-ton Zhenghe are expected to visit sites including the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum during their stay in Japan through Monday.

In June 2008, a Japanese destroyer carrying aid supplies for earthquake survivors in the Chinese province of Sichuan docked at a southern China port.

That was the first port call to China by a Japanese warship since the end of World War II.

The port calls have been interpreted as a sign of Japan-China defense exchanges entering a new phase of improving ties, Kyodo said. (dpa)