ANKARA
Leaders of South Korea, China and Japan are set to meet in Seoul on Monday for the first trilateral dialogue since 2019, amid an escalating regional security situation.
Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Chinese Premier Li Qiang are expected to agree to cooperate in tackling common challenges such as epidemics and population ageing.
The three leaders will hold back-to-back bilateral talks on Sunday before the trilateral session, Seoul-based Yonhap News reported.
It is the first three-way summit between Asian countries since Dec. 2019, following a hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic and strained Seoul-Tokyo relations over historical disputes.
The three leaders will discuss six areas of cooperation: economy and trade, sustainable development, health issues, science and technology, disaster and safety management, and people-to-people exchange. They will adopt a joint statement regarding the summit's outcome.
Yoon is expected to discuss ways to promote strategic communication, expand economic cooperation and trade, and exchange views on security issues during a bilateral meeting with Li, who is visiting for the first time since taking office in March 2023.
Yoon and Kishida are likely to discuss how to deepen practical cooperation in various areas and bolster trilateral cooperation with the US to deter North Korea's threats.
Although their differences over North Korea and regional security issues are unlikely to be resolved at the meeting, Seoul officials say it is an important step toward reviving trilateral dialogue to avoid conflict and increase collaboration in the economy, technology, and health sectors.
South Korea's Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo said the upcoming summit will serve as a "turning point" for restoring and normalizing the trilateral summit and provide an opportunity to recover "future-oriented and practical cooperation" among the three countries.
