President Park Geun-hye has highlighted the importance of trilateral cooperation among Korea, Japan and China. She also emphasized the mechanics of multilateral cooperation in Northeast Asia.

“If a trust-building structure in Northeast Asia becomes a reality, it would help the three countries pass an important turning point as they move toward the remarkable development of trilateral cooperation. Through this year’s trilateral meeting, I hope that the three countries can have an in-depth, meaningful discussion about the future direction of such developments,” said President Park on March 21 to Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Fumio Kishida and to Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi. The two ministers were visiting Korea to attend the seventh trilateral foreign ministers’ meeting.

“This year is a meaningful year for all three countries, as it marks the 70th anniversary of both Korea’s independence and the end of World War II, and the 50th anniversary of the normalization of the Korea-Japan diplomatic relationship. History this year gives new momentum to cooperation among the three countries,” said the president.

President Park told Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, “As this year marks the 70th year of Korea’s independence and is the 50-year anniversary of normalizing our bilateral diplomatic relationship, I hope you can continue to make efforts so that both Korea and Japan can work together for the future, and that cooperation among Korea, Japan and China can be restored and become even stronger.”

President Park also told Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, “As you have contributed to the development of the Korea-China relationship and as you are well aware of both Korea and Japan, having served as the former Chinese ambassador to Japan, I hope you can contribute further to the advancement of the trilateral cooperative relationship.”



President Park said, “This year’s trilateral gathering is a good example that proves the usefulness of the multilateral cooperation mechanism in Northeast Asia.” In this regard, she introduced her administration's Northeast Asia Peace and Cooperation Initiative, which the Korean government has been pushing in order to build a mechanism for cooperation and dialogue across Northeast Asia.

Regarding issues on the Korean Peninsula, President Park said, “Seoul will leave all paths toward cooperation open, as long as Pyongyang chooses to have dialogue with sincerity and with a willingness for change.”

“Solving North Korean nuclear weapons issues will not only contribute to stabilizing inter-Korean relations, but also Northeast Asian relations. Peaceful unification of the Korean Peninsula would offer a new driving force, not only for the Korean Peninsula, but also for the peace and prosperity of Northeast Asia and the world,” said President Park, while calling for both the Chinese and Japanese foreign ministers to take an interest in and to support her government in this regard.

Both Japanese and Chinese foreign ministers expressed their support for the Korean government’s stance, for the Northeast Asia Peace and Cooperation Initiative and for issues involving the Korean Peninsula.



By Yoon Sojung
Korea.net Staff Writer
Photos: Cheong Wa Dae
arete@korea.kr