South Korean President May Meet Japanese Prime Minister in Person
Trump Expected to Attend... Attention on Possible South Korea-U.S. Summit
NHK reported on May 14 that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has decided to invite the leaders of four Indo-Pacific countries (IP4)?South Korea, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand?to its summit scheduled for June 24-25 in The Hague, Netherlands.
NHK noted that since the summit will take place after South Korea's presidential election on June 3, there is a possibility that the South Korean president and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba may meet in person.
The NATO summit is also expected to be attended by U.S. President Donald Trump, drawing attention to whether a South Korea-U.S. summit will take place. If South Korea is invited to the Group of Seven (G7) summit to be held in Canada from June 15 to 17, the South Korean president could have opportunities for multilateral diplomatic engagement with foreign leaders twice within a week.
NATO does not plan to hold separate meetings between its member states and the IP4 during this summit, as the focus will be on discussions regarding increased defense spending. However, NHK reported that NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte is considering the possibility of a separate meeting involving the IP4 leaders and President Trump. NATO has consistently invited the IP4 to recent summits and foreign ministers’ meetings.
NHK commented, "With Russia and China strengthening their ties in economic and security matters, it appears that NATO intends to continue enhancing its relationships with the Indo-Pacific region even after the launch of the Trump administration."
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