Japan PM Takaichi Arrives in S. Korea for APEC Summit

Tokyo, Oct. 30 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi arrived in South Korea on Thursday afternoon to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum summit scheduled for Friday and Saturday. On the sidelines of the APEC summit, Takaichi will hold her first summit meeting with South Korean President Lee Jae-myung in the southeastern South Korean city of Gyeongju later on Thursday. “I want to make the meeting meaningful,” Takaichi said of the Japan-South Korea summit as she spoke to reporters at the prime minister’s office in Tokyo before departing from Tokyo’s Haneda Airport on a government plane. In the talks with Lee, the prime minister hopes to confirm the policy of beefing up solidarity between Japan and South Korea, as well as among the two East Asian countries and the United States, in the face of North Korea’s increasing military ties with Russia. Takaichi also expressed her enthusiasm for the APEC summit, saying, “I hope to demonstrate our unwavering commitment to strong economic development and prosperity of the region.” Relations between Japan and South Korea improved significantly in 2023 under then Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and then South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol. The “shuttle diplomacy,” or reciprocal visits by the two countries’ leaders, was resumed, which continued between their successors, Shigeru Ishiba and Lee. However, concerns have emerged in both countries about the potential deterioration of bilateral relations due to the hawkish stance of Takaichi, who took office last week, including her past visits to war-related Yasukuni Shrine. Apparently considering such risk, Takaichi chose not to visit the shrine, which is regarded by neighboring countries as a symbol of Japan’s past militarism, during its autumn festival earlier this month. In her policy speech on Friday, she emphasized that South Korea is “an important neighboring country” and expressed her intention to strengthen bilateral relations through dialogue between the leaders. Also, efforts are under way to arrange a meeting between Takaichi and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]