Japanese, South Korean and Chinese leaders are likely to agree Monday to work together in a wide range of fields, such as people-to-people exchanges and economic cooperation, at their first trilateral summit in more than four years.
Following their meeting, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, and Chinese Premier Li Qiang are expected to issue a joint statement underscoring the importance of improved relations among the three Asian countries.
With the regional security environment becoming more severe amid North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, the focus is on whether the three leaders will present a united stance on Pyongyang, which has been strengthening its economic and military ties with China.
The Japanese government said earlier Monday that North Korea has notified Tokyo of its plan to launch a satellite-carrying rocket before June 4. The launch might involve the use of ballistic missile technology, a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions.
North Korea and Russia have been trying to deepen relations with China, while Japan and South Korea have been bolstering security cooperation, criticizing Beijing's increasing military assertiveness and Moscow's long-running invasion of Ukraine.
It is uncertain whether Japan, South Korea and China will commit to the "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula" on Monday, as agreed at the previous summit in December 2019 in the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu, sources close to the matter said.
On the economic front, the three leaders may exchange views on how to move ahead with negotiations on a three-way free trade agreement, which stalled in early 2020 against a backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, the sources added.
In principle, the Asian nations hold trilateral summits annually on a rotating basis, but they have occasionally been suspended as Japan's ties with its two neighbors have soured over historical and territorial disputes.
Recently, Tokyo and Beijing have been at odds over trade after China imposed a blanket ban on Japanese seafood imports in the wake of the release of treated radioactive wastewater from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant that began in August 2023.
At their bilateral meeting on Sunday, Kishida asked Li for an immediate lifting of the import ban. But Li expressed Beijing's anxiety about the discharge, referring to the water as "nuclear-contaminated," according to Chinese state-run media.
Last week, meanwhile, China carried out two-day military drills around Taiwan, arguing that they are a "strong punishment" for those seeking the island's independence and a "stern warning" to "external forces" against interference and provocation.
The military exercises followed last Monday's inauguration of Taiwan's new President Lai Ching-te, whom China condemns as a separatist. He is the leader of the ruling, independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party.
Kishida said Sunday that he conveyed Japan's "serious concern" about China's expanding military activities, emphasizing Tokyo believes stability in the Taiwan Strait is "crucial" not only for the region but also for the international community.
China's Foreign Ministry, however, said Li told Kishida that Taiwan is at the "core" of Beijing's interests and a "red line" that must not be crossed.
