hankyoreh

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang speaks about the possibility of a trilateral summit taking place between South Korea

On Mar. 20, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang mentioned the possibility of the leaders of South Korea, China and Japan holding a summit in the first half of the year.

“We will actively consider holding a summit with Japan and South Korea in the first half of the year. As our relations with Japan continue to improve, we will consider visiting Japan to attend a summit with Japan and South Korea,” Li said during a press conference held after the closing ceremony of the National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Mar. 20.

On the same day, Japanese wire service Kyodo News quoted multiple diplomatic sources as saying that South Korea, China and Japan had reached a rough agreement about a plan to hold a summit in Tokyo early in May.

It is Japan’s turn to chair the next trilateral summit. If the summit does take place, it would be the first time for Li and South Korean President Moon Jae-in to visit Japan since taking office. It would also be the first time for a Chinese premier and a South Korean president to visit Japan since 2011. The last time that a trilateral summit was held was in Seoul in Nov. 2015, and China has been reluctant to hold any further summits because of its domestic political situation. Kyodo News added that a China-Japan summit and a South Korea-Japan summit could also be held around the time of the trilateral summit.

“Our basic position is that the earlier a summit with China and Japan is held, the better,” a senior official at the Blue House told reporters on Mar. 20 when asked about Li’s mention of a trilateral summit in the first half of the year.

By Kim Oi-hyun, Beijing correspondent, Kim Mi-na and Seong Yeon-cheol, staff reporters

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]