South Korean The President and Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso

At the Korea-Japan summit meeting held in Tokyo, Japan on Sunday (June 28) South Korean The President and Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso agreed to arrange for a five-way consultation to realize the denuclearization of North Korea. The five way consultation, which comes before the six-way talks with North Korea will involve South Korea, Japan, China, the United States and Russia.

During the summit talks that lasted for over an hour, the two leaders reaffirmed the existing view that North Korea''s possession of nuclear would weaponry not be tolerated. Both sides stressed the importance of UN member nations'' implementing United Nations Security Council Resolution 1874 that urges North Korea to cease its threat of nuclear tests or missile launches.

In addition, President Lee called for the Japanese prime minister''s active cooperation to grant ethnic Koreans in Japan a right to vote in local elections, as there are as many as 500,000 Koreans residents living in Japan. Lee also called for his Japanese counterpart to encourage advancement of Japanese businesses to Korea.

The two leaders agreed to strengthen ties in the field of nuclear energy, science technology and space technology. They shared the thinking that a Korea-Japan free trade agreement should progress toward mutual benefits for both countries.

Lee and Aso lauded the joint Korea-Japan components and raw materials exhibition held last April. A total of 187 businesses from Korea and 50 from Japan participated in the exhibition, resulting in US$360 million worth of contracts. They decided to work towards a successful Korea-Japan CEO forum for small and mid-sized companies, scheduled for July 3rd in Tokyo. A total of about 150 CEOs from Korea and Japan are to take part in the forum.

Lee and Aso also expressed satisfaction about student exchanges between the two countries, namely the working holiday visa and program to dispatch students to science and engineering departments and agreed to further extend the ties between youth of Japan and Korea. In connection with this, the two leaders decided to cooperate for the success of the Korea-Japan joint festival, slated to open in September in Tokyo.

The President Myung-bak and Japanese PM Taro Aso (right) at the press conference after summit talks on Sunday (June 28).

For a speedy recovery from the global financial crisis, the two countries also agreed to cooperate further at the G20 summit this coming September and keep close ties on issues of climate change and the global war against terror.

This is the eighth meeting between President Lee and Prime Minister Aso. The previous meeting between the two took place at the G20 meeting in London last April. This latest summit meeting is in response to Aso''s earlier visit to Korea last January.

It is part of the shuttle diplomacy agreed between the two leaders to talk to each other frequently whenever the need arises. The summit took place during The President Lee''s one-day visit to Tokyo. 

By Kim Hee-sung
Korea.net Staff Writer

* source : Korea.net