China, Japan and South Korean leaders meet for trilateral summit in Seoul

Asia-Pacific, News May 29, 2024 , by IRIA No Comments

Chinese Premier Li Qiang, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida engaged in detailed discussions at the ninth trilateral summit meeting and the eighth trilateral business summit held in Seoul on May 27, 2024.

The three leaders committed to enhancing “practical cooperation” while carefully avoiding areas of disagreement, marking the revival of high-level dialogue for the first time in nearly five years. The joint statement of the trilateral summit vowed to speed up negotiations on a “high-quality” trilateral free trade deal and agreed to expand programs related to climate change, student exchanges, and disaster relief.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang hailed the meeting as “both a restart and a new beginning.” He addressed reporters after meeting with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

The leaders of the three nations agreed to regularize the three-way talks more frequently, which had not occurred since 2019 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and friction among the Asian powers.

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida highlighted the need for Japan, China, and South Korea to work together to promote global cooperation instead of division and conflict, despite occasional challenges as neighboring countries.

The Japanese prime minister elaborated on his country’s initiatives in three key areas: people-to-people exchanges, sustainable society, and cooperation with ASEAN, reinforcing the significance of trilateral today of collaboration.

China, Japan, South Korea leaders meeting — *^{A trilateral summit of Japan, China, and South Korea was held at the Blue House guesthouse in Seoul on May 27, 2024. (Image Credit: Yomiuri Shimbun/via Japan News/Twitter)}*

Bilateral meeting

Chinese Premier Li Qiang and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol held a bilateral meeting. They held discussions related to diplomatic and security dialogue and resumed discussions on a free trade agreement, one day ahead of their trilateral summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

“China and South Korea face significant common challenges of international affairs,” Yoon said, pointing to the wars in Ukraine and Gaza as sources of increased uncertainty in the global economy.

The two leaders agreed that countries should work together to tackle common challenges. “Just as Korea and China have overcome various difficulties together over the past 30 years and contributed to each other’s development and growth, I hope to continue to strengthen bilateral cooperation even in the face of today’s global complex crises,” Yoon said, according to his office.

North Korea threat

In their public statement, the three leaders primarily emphasized areas of cooperation. Maki Kobayashi, the press secretary for Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, characterized the talks as “very constructive.”

However, contentious issues loomed over the discussions, particularly following North Korea’s announcement just hours earlier of its plan to launch another military spy satellite into orbit by early next week. North Korea, which is nuclear-armed, has pledged to launch three satellites this year as part of its efforts to monitor what it perceives as U.S. military threats in the region.

Both Yoon and Kishida urged North Korea to cancel the planned launch, stating that it would violate United Nations Security Council resolutions. In contrast, China’s Li called for “all parties to play a constructive role and remain committed to easing tensions.”

*^{Chinese Premier Li Qiang speaks at the eighth business summit among China, Japan, and South Korea, in Seoul, South Korea, on May 27, 2024. (Image Credit: Xinhua/Pang Xinglei)}*

Hours after the meeting concluded, South Korea’s military announced that it had conducted attack drills on Monday involving approximately 20 fighter jets, including F-35 aircraft, to “demonstrate the will and ability to punish the enemy’s provocation.”

China, which has a mutual defense treaty with North Korea, argued that South Korea and its ally, the United States, should prioritize making concessions rather than applying military pressure on Pyongyang.