Chinese Premier Li Qiang says the three countries should see each other as “partners and opportunities for development.”
China's top official urged Japan and South Korea to reject protectionism and defend globalization as the countries began their first trilateral summit in nearly five years.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang made the remarks on Monday when he met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Yeok-seol in Seoul for their countries' first tripartite meeting since December 2019. .
Li said the three countries should view each other as “partners and opportunities for development,” Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported.
“Li called for opposing turning economic and trade issues into political games or security issues, and rejecting protectionism as well as decoupling or breaking up supply chains,” Xinhua said.
On Sunday, Li said foreign companies were an “indispensable force” for China's development and that his country would always be open to such companies, Xinhua said.
China will expand market access to improve the business environment so that foreign companies “can rest assured of their investment and development in China,” Li said during a meeting with Samsung chief Lee Jae-yong.
While the three leaders are expected to push for greater economic cooperation during the summit, the agenda has been overshadowed by North Korea's announcement that it will launch a satellite into orbit between May 27 and June 4.
Experts say there is significant overlap between the technology used to launch satellites and ballistic missiles, which Pyongyang is prohibited from developing under multiple United Nations resolutions.
Yoon said the international community should respond “decisively” to any launch by Pyongyang.
“I hope that our three countries, which are working together as members of the UN Security Council this year, will join forces to contribute to peace and prosperity in the international community by marshalling wisdom and strength in the face of a complex global and geopolitical crisis. conflicts,” Yoon said before starting talks with his Chinese and Japanese counterparts.
Kishida also asked Pyongyang to cancel the launch.
South Korean officials earlier said the leaders would sign a joint statement on cooperation in economy and trade, science and technology, people-to-people exchanges and health, and population aging.
Japan's Nikkei Asia reported that the sides were expected to agree to resume free trade agreement negotiations that have been suspended since 2019.
The three leaders' draft joint statement commits the parties to holding talks on a “mutually beneficial” and “high-quality and inclusive” free trade agreement, Nikkei said.
More than 200 business leaders from the three countries agreed to boost cooperation on trade and supply chains during a meeting held on the sidelines of the summit.
Relations between China, Japan and South Korea have been strained by several disputes, many of them related to issues arising from Japan's wartime imperial aggression.
