Yoon: "Expand Friendship Through Korea-Japan Shuttle Diplomacy... Must Deepen and Broaden Cooperation" (Comprehensive)

Meeting with Akiba Takeo, Director of Japan's National Security Secretariat
"Decided to pay a return visit with gratitude to Yoon"... Delivered Kishida's message
Cho Tae-yong attends Korea-Japan Security Chiefs Meeting and Economic Security Dialogue Launch Meeting

President Yoon Suk-yeol met with Takeo Akiba, Director of Japan's National Security Secretariat, on the 3rd and expressed his view that "as shuttle diplomacy between Korea and Japan continues, friendship and cooperation between the two countries are expected to gradually expand." Director Akiba conveyed a message from Prime Minister Kishida, stating that he decided on this reciprocal visit with a sense of gratitude toward President Yoon, who has led the improvement of Korea-Japan relations.

On the same day, President Yoon received Director Akiba, who came to Korea for the Korea-Japan National Security Advisors meeting, at the Yongsan Presidential Office, saying, "Korea and Japan, as partners pursuing common interests based on shared values, must respond in solidarity to the global complex crises," emphasizing this point.

President Yoon Suk-yeol is meeting with Takeo Akiba, Director-General of Japan's National Security Secretariat, who visited South Korea for a Korea-Japan National Security Directors' meeting at the Yongsan Presidential Office building in Seoul on the 3rd.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

He particularly stressed his expectation to deepen the scope and depth of cooperation between Korea and Japan through close consultations between the Korea-Japan NSCs not only in security but also in industry and science and technology fields. Evaluating the recent atmosphere of improving Korea-Japan relations, President Yoon said, "From the perspective of preparing for the future, it is necessary to actively support exchanges between the youth and students of both countries," and added, "Efforts are needed for the governments of both countries to jointly consider various measures so that the improvement of Korea-Japan relations and its benefits can be felt by the people." He also requested Director Akiba to play a significant role, saying, "As shuttle diplomacy between Korea and Japan continues, I believe friendship and cooperation between the two countries will gradually expand."

Director Akiba expressed gratitude to the Korean government for transporting Japanese nationals together during the recent operation to rescue Korean residents from Sudan. President Yoon responded that it is natural for neighboring countries like Korea and Japan to show consideration and cooperate.

Director Akiba also congratulated President Yoon on his successful state visit to the United States. He highly praised President Yoon's courageous decision leading the improvement of Korea-Japan relations and conveyed a message from Prime Minister Kishida that he decided on this reciprocal visit with a sense of gratitude to repay, even if only a little. He added, "We hope to expand cooperation between Korea and Japan in various fields," and said, "We will strive to ensure that Prime Minister Kishida's upcoming visit to Korea is successful."

Meanwhile, Cho Tae-yong, Director of the National Security Office, held the Korea-Japan National Security Advisors meeting and the inaugural meeting of the Economic Security Dialogue with Director Akiba. Both sides evaluated the full-fledged development trend of Korea-Japan relations formed after President Yoon's visit to Japan in March and discussed the preparation status for Prime Minister Kishida's visit to Korea scheduled for the 7th. They also agreed to continue concretizing cooperation in all fields, including security, economy, socio-culture, and human exchanges, for the future-oriented development of Korea-Japan relations. Additionally, they shared concerns that North Korea's nuclear and missile threats pose a significant threat to the international community. From the perspective of maintaining and developing regional peace and stability, both sides agreed to closely unite and cooperate in the process of implementing Korea's Indo-Pacific strategy and Japan's Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) initiative.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.