South Korea's Yoon, Japan's Ishiba to meet on sidelines of ASEAN gathering

10/10/2024 11:35

        South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba were scheduled to hold their first summit on Thursday in Laos, Yoon's office said, as the neighbours seek to deepen security and economic ties.
        
        The meeting, their first since Ishiba took office on Oct. 1, will take place on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) conference in the capital of Laos Vientiane, Yoon's office said in a statement, without elaborating.
        
        It comes as Seoul looks to continue improving relations under Tokyo's new leadership, building on the progress engineered by Yoon and Ishiba's predecessor, Fumio Kishida.
        
        Yoon and Ishiba, in their first phone call last week, agreed to forge a united response together with the United States to counter North Korea's threats.
        
        A former defence minister, Ishiba as prime minister has pledged to foster deeper ties with friendly nations to fend off what he considers to be the gravest security threats his country has faced since World War Two.