1. Deputy Minister for Political Affairs Chung Byung-won met with Funakoshi Takehiro, Senior Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, in Seoul on Monday, May 20, between 16:30 and 18:00, and exchanged views on issues of mutual interest. Prior to the meeting, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Hong Kyun met with Senior Deputy Minister Funakoshi.

2. In this meeting, Deputy Minister Chung affirmed the importance of improving Korea-Japan relations and acknowledged the positive trends in bilateral relations in various areas such as security, economy, culture, and people-to-people exchanges. Both sides agreed to continue diplomatic efforts to maintain this momentum.

3. In addition, both sides exchanged views on regional and global issues, including cooperation among Korea, the United States, and Japan, as well as among Korea, Japan, and China. In particular, both sides agreed to work towards the successful hosting of the Korea-Japan-China trilateral summit, which aims to restore and normalize the trilateral cooperation following the COVID-19 pandemic.

4. Deputy Minister Chung conveyed Korea’s stance that Korean companies should not face unfair discrimination in relation to the administrative guidance concerning Line Yahoo. In this regard, both sides agreed to maintain close communication between diplomatic authorities to manage sensitive issues.