Attention on North Korea-Russia Warning Levels
President Yoon: "Bilateral Talks with Over 10 Countries"
President Yoon Suk-yeol and First Lady Kim Keon-hee arrived at Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii, USA, on the 8th (local time) ahead of attending the 75th NATO summit, and are greeting as they disembark from Air Force One, their exclusive aircraft. [Image source=Yonhap News]
President Yoon Suk-yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will hold a bilateral meeting on the 10th (local time) in Washington D.C., USA, on the sidelines of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit.
The Korea-Japan summit comes about a month after the trilateral summit between Korea, Japan, and China held in Seoul last May. In particular, attention is focused on whether the Korea-Japan leaders will jointly send a strong message to North Korea and Russia, as last month North Korea and Russia signed a "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty," strengthening their military and economic alliance.
A senior official from the Presidential Office said on the 8th (local time) at the press center set up in Honolulu, Hawaii, "The Korea-Japan summit is scheduled to take place on the afternoon of the 10th," adding, "Security issues will be addressed."
This NATO summit invited leaders from the four Indo-Pacific partner countries (IP4) of NATO: Korea, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand. A Presidential Office official said, "Initially, it was expected that there would be more than five bilateral meetings on the 10th during the NATO summit, but now it seems there will be more than ten," adding, "Germany, Canada, the Netherlands, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Finland, Japan, Norway, and the United Kingdom are among the candidates." Although the schedule is still being finalized, there is flexibility, and bilateral meetings are being actively conducted according to the needs of each country's leader.
In particular, this meeting between the Korea and Japan leaders takes place amid rising concerns over the North Korea-Russia military alliance, raising expectations about the tone of their statements. Regarding this, Kyodo News explained, "They intend to exchange views on the East Asian situation, including China's hegemonic behavior and North Korea's repeated ballistic missile launches, and discuss cooperation on security."
Initially, the government did not confirm whether Korea-U.S., Korea-Japan, or Korea-U.S.-Japan summits would be held at the NATO summit. Given the tight schedules of the two leaders, it was uncertain whether separate meetings would take place. However, the fact that the Korea-Japan leaders finalized a summit by carving out time amid their busy schedules is analyzed as evidence of the necessity to jointly warn North Korea and Russia.
Meanwhile, President Yoon and Prime Minister Kishida will both attend the IP4 leaders' meeting followed by the main NATO summit. President Yoon arrived in Honolulu, Hawaii, on the 8th to begin his tour schedule including the NATO summit, and Prime Minister Kishida is scheduled to visit Washington D.C., where the NATO summit will be held, starting on the 10th.
The bilateral meeting between President Yoon and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, originally scheduled for the 10th, has been rescheduled to the 11th.
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