[한중일 외교회담]
Meeting after 4 years… King returns home early
The press release was not even adopted… “China shows discomfort with Korea-U.S.-Japan solidarity”
Government pushes for trilateral summit early next year
On the afternoon of the 26th, the Nurimaru APEC House conference hall in Haeundae-gu, Busan. The foreign ministers of Korea, China, and Japan left the meeting room immediately after completing the meeting, which lasted about 1 hour and 40 minutes. South Korea’s Foreign Minister Park Jin, the chairman, sent off Japan’s Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi, a member of the Central Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China.
It was the first time in four years and three months that the foreign ministers of the three countries gathered together for a meeting. However, the joint press conference held by the three countries to announce the results of the meeting was canceled. It was a different scene from the three countries’ ministers standing side by side and announcing the results of the meeting immediately after the Korea-China-Japan Foreign Ministers’ Meeting held in Beijing in August 2019. This meeting was held to discuss the schedule of the Korea-China-Japan summit, but there was no official announcement of the schedule after the Korea-China-Japan foreign ministers’ meeting.
At the Foreign Ministers’ Meeting held on the 26th, Korea, China, and Japan decided to hold the next stage, the Trilateral Summit, at the ‘earliest mutually convenient time’ and decided to speed up preparations. However, it is known that the government is pushing to hold the Korea-China-Japan summit in the first half of next year as it has become virtually impossible to hold it within the year, which Korea, the chair country, had hoped for.
An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, “(So far) there has been no agreed upon date and time for the summit,” and “We are communicating with various plans.” As China has recently shown a somewhat passive attitude toward Korea-China-Japan foreign ministers’ meetings and summits, there is also speculation among diplomats that it may take longer for the actual summit to be held.
The foreign ministers of the three countries spoke with one voice about the importance of cooperation. Minister Park said, “Trilateral cooperation has been difficult for a while due to various circumstances, including COVID-19,” and added, “At today’s meeting, we agreed to quickly restore and normalize trilateral cooperation.” Minister Park proposed promoting the future generation exchange project as a key cooperation project between Korea, China and Japan, and China and Japan also agreed to this, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs official said. Korea, China, and Japan agreed to continue communication at all levels to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue.
It is known that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Korea, which chairs this Korea-China-Japan Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, initially planned a joint press conference and a friendly dinner for the three ministers. However, Director Wang notified that the schedule would be shortened, and as Director Wang’s return schedule was postponed, it was reported that it was decided not to hold a joint press conference or dinner. Director Wang returned home immediately after completing the meeting that day. A diplomatic source said, “China did not give a definite answer until the last minute on when Director Wang could attend the Korea-China-Japan Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.”
Regarding Director Wang’s decision to return home early, in effect refusing to hold a joint press conference and dinner, some analysts say that “China has shown signs of discomfort with Korea and Japan’s strengthening solidarity with the United States.” Some point out that China, which had been actively reaching out to Korea and Japan as the U.S.-China conflict intensified, changed its attitude from Korea-China-Japan cooperation to a more passive direction as recent U.S.-China dialogue continued.
Korea, China, and Japan did not even adopt a joint press statement after completing this meeting. The foreign ministries of the three countries each presented data summarizing the results of the meeting. An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained, “After the summit, a result document (containing the common position of each country) is issued, but there is no certain custom at the Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.”
Director Wang and Foreign Minister Kamikawa did not pay a courtesy visit to President Yoon Seok-yeol during this visit. This is different from the previous visit to Korea in March 2015 on the occasion of the Korea-China-Japan Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, when Minister Wang and then-Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida visited the Blue House and paid a courtesy visit to then-President Park Geun-hye. In a phone call with the Dong-A Ilbo on the 26th, a senior government official said, “Director Wang’s visit to President Yoon was not promoted in the first place,” adding, “This was because the Korea-China-Japan Foreign Ministers’ Meeting was held in Busan and Director Wang’s schedule was tight.”
Busan =
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.