Ishiba, South Korea’s Lee May Meet during G7 Summit

Jiji Press

18:22 JST, June 7, 2025

SEOUL (Jiji Press) — Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and new South Korean President Lee Jae-myung may hold their first in-person meeting during the Group of Seven summit to be held in Canada later this month.

The South Korean presidential office said Saturday that Lee is slated to join the summit, at the invitation of the G7 side. Lee, who took office only on Wednesday, is thus expected to make his diplomatic debut at the summit.

The meeting among leaders of the seven major countries — Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States — is scheduled to take place for three days from June 15.

Lee has made harsh remarks toward Japan in the past. Recently, however, he has indicated a stance of putting weight on cooperation among Japan, the United States and South Korea, calling Japan an important partner of his country.

The Japanese government apparently hopes to realize an Ishiba-Lee meeting at an early date so that the two sides can share their views on further developing the bilateral relationship.

Also on the sidelines of the G7 summit, Lee may hold his first face-to-face meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump.