June 2023

U.S. President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and President Yoon Suk Yeol (from left) pose for photos ahead of the Korea-U.S. and Japan summit in Hiroshima, Japan.

Current Korea

President Yoon Pledges Stronger Cooperation with US, Japan

Written by Jung Joo-ri,
Korea.net reporter
Photos Courtesy of Office of the President

President Yoon Suk Yeol on May 21 held a trilateral summit with U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Hiroshima, Japan, on the sidelines of the Group of 7 economies (G7) summit.

At their talks held at Grand Prince Hotel Hiroshima, the venue of the G7 summit, the three leaders agreed to develop their three-way cooperation to a new level, presidential spokesperson Lee Do Woon said in a news release.

The three leaders in this summit recalled their previous talks during Prime Minister Kishida’s visit to the U.S. in January; President Yoon’s trip to Japan in March, which opened a new chapter in bilateral ties, and his state visit to the U.S. last month; and the Japanese leader’s visit to Seoul early this month.

They agreed to reinforce trilateral strategic cooperation not only to boost deterrence against North Korea, but also solidify a free and open international order based on rule of law.

They also agreed to deepen concrete cooperation in specific sectors such as trilateral security like sharing real-time information on warnings for North Korean missiles, reinforcing trilateral collaboration in Indo-Pacific strategy, economic security and involvement in Pacific island countries.

In the morning, President Yoon and Prime Minister Kishida visited Hiroshima’s Peace Memorial Park to pay tribute at a memorial stone for Korean victims of the 1945 atomic bombing of the city, the first time for the leaders of both nations to do this together.

In his summit with the prime minister afterwards, President Yoon said, “Our joint tribute today will be remembered as the Prime Minister’s courageous act to prepare for a peaceful future while we simultaneously conveyed our condolences to Korean victims of the atomic bombing.”

The Japanese leader added, “I think this was very important for peace between Korea and Japan, world peace and prosperity.”

Both leaders also agreed to “continue working closely at all levels to achieve tangible results,” the news release added.