Japanese, Chinese, South Korean Foreign Ministers to Work Toward Summit

By Yujiro Okabe and Kazuki Koike/ Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers

21:00 JST, November 26, 2023

BUSAN, South Korea — The Japanese, Chinese and South Korean foreign ministers had their first trilateral talks in about four years in Busan on Sunday.

Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and her counterparts Park Jin and Wang Yi, from South Korea and China respectively, discussed when to hold a trilateral summit and issues surrounding North Korea, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry.

“We sometimes face difficult issues because of our proximity, but progress in cooperation among our three countries will greatly contribute to peace and prosperity in the region and the world,” Kamikawa said at the start of the meeting, after a lunch between the ministers. She added that she hoped the meeting would lead to broad, renewed cooperation between the countries.

The ministers confirmed their cooperation toward holding at an early stage a Japan-China-South Korea summit, which hasn’t taken place since December 2019. South Korea is seeking to have the meeting in Seoul by the end of the year. However, it is likely that the summit will be held after the start of 2024, because it may be difficult to coordinate the meeting before the end of this year.

They also discussed the launch of military reconnaissance satellites and other issues concerning North Korea. Japan and South Korea likely asked China, which has sway over North Korea, to urge Pyongyang to rein in its provocative behavior.